


Pulse

by AconiteWolfsbane



Series: Stranded [1]
Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Gen, like... no-one goes anywhere for half the fic, this is hella slow-burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-31
Updated: 2019-03-11
Packaged: 2019-10-20 01:16:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 22,657
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17612684
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AconiteWolfsbane/pseuds/AconiteWolfsbane
Summary: After a series of strange explosions, The Crystal Gems find themselves stranded.Will they ever make it home?An AU fic, pre-PD=RQ reveal.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> This is the fic I was writing for Nanowrimo last year. My arm's recovered enough to be able to (more-or-less) comfortably use. So I've finally been able to finish editing it.
> 
> Of course, I fully expect to find typos and grammar errors mere seconds after submitting each chapter, sigh...
> 
> It's set around the time of 'Letters to Lars', but in this AU, Steven and Peridot convinced Lapis to stay.  
> So Cat Steven is present, and the PD=RQ reveal hasn't been triggered yet, as Lapis never went to the moon.

“ **Peridot Facet 2F5L-Cut 9BT, reporting.** ” The green Gem adjusted her position as she waited for a reply.   
“ **Proceed, Peridot.** ”   
She nodded. “ **I am in position over the dirt-ball world now, and have selected a target. To avoid early detection and** **the slightest** **possib** **i** **l** **ity of** **failure, I have selected an entirely dark area of the planet, indicating a low native population. I am ready to begin the mission, and will report when complete.** ”

The large figure on the screen frowned. “ **Do not fail like your predecessor.** ”   
Peridot gulped. “ **No, My Diamond. I refuse to fail like that defective** ** _clod_** **. Peridot cut 9BT, out.** ” she gave the Diamond salute before the transmission cut off.   
Deftly, she interfaced with the ships’ controls and guided it down towards the surface.

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The wind swept through the round yellow hair that framed her face like a halo. Using the tractor beam function of her limb enhancers, she moved a strange device onto the warp pad.   
Pressing a panel on the side made it open up to a keypad, into which she quickly typed out a code. The device started beeping rapidly, and she quickly interfaced with the warp pad itself, activating it and sending the device away.   
Turning, Peridot ran back to her small ship, quickly flying out of range.   
“ **My Diamond. Peridot Facet 2F5L-Cut 9BT, reporting that the mission is complete.** ” she grinned as she looked at the scanners readouts, watching the effects of her actions below.  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I shall name her Spheridot. And she shall be my fuzzy. Lol
> 
> I just love "characters get stranded; have to fight their way back" stories... No timey-wimey stuff in this one though.


	2. Dangerous

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You get this one as a bonus today.  
> I have a doctor's appointment for my arm, where I may or not get the brace removed.  
> However, hospital trips tire me out, so I won't be able to submit anything else for a couple of days.  
> I might give you another chapter before Monday though.

“ **Woo-** **hoo** **! Go** **Stevonnie** **!** ” Amethyst shouted.   
Beside her, Garnet held up her hand-made sign, proclaiming her support for Stevonnie as she grinned madly. “ **You** **can take her!** ”   
Pearl rolled her eyes. “ **Some** **friends they are.** ” she muttered with a smile.   
Stevonnie heard her and chuckled. “ **Ah, it’s all in good fun.** ”   
Pearl laughed. “ **Oh, it’ll be fun winning, that’s for sure.** ” she smirked and raised her sword. “ **Are you ready for this little sparring match?** ”   
Stevonnie lifted the large pink sword and summoned the clear pink shield onto their left arm. “ **You know I am.** ” they grinned at their teacher. 

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Steven and Connie unfused with a sigh. “ **Man, we** **were** **_so close_** **to beating her that time...** ” Connie groaned.   
Pearl smiled as she held out a hand, helping the young teen to her feet. “ **Well, considering you were going up against a Gem with almost six thousand years of experience, you did very well, the pair of you.** ”   
Garnet walked over calmly. “ **Pearl’s taken down bigger, older Gems than even me without any trouble. The fact that neither of you even have a scratch speaks** **volumes** **of** **Stevonnie’s** **skill.** ”   
“ **Or for Pearl’s skill in holding back and going easy on us....** ” Connie glanced over at the slim Gem.   
Pearl shrugged. “ **Well, if I didn’t, you’d both be minced meat right about now.** ”   
“ **You’d be tender hamburger meat.** ” Amethyst shrugged. “ **Mmm** **... Long pig...** ” she added with a grin.   
Garnet nodded. “ **When Pearl went all out, even Rose was unsure if her shield was strong enough to stop her.** ”   
Pearl blushed. “ **Not that I mind the flattery, but we should be heading back now**.” 

As they reached the top of the short flight of stairs, Pearl paused. “ **Wait a moment.** ” Reaching up, she summoned her Pearl Prize Pouch from the gem imbedded in her forehead. Quickly, she removed her roll of stickers and turned towards the kids. “ **Okay... One for each of you for the skill you displayed during our sparring match. One each for adapting to the battle. And one each for that sneak attack. That almost got me...** ” she admitted, handing out the stickers. “ **Which means that you’ve both earned a prize.** ”   
Steven stuck the stickers to his face and reached into the pouch with a grin. “ **Ooh, kitty ears!** ” he pulled out the plastic headband and slipped it onto his head, his thick curly brown hair springing up around it, hiding the band. He reached up and fondled the soft cat ears. “ **I’m Cookie Cat!** ”   
Connie pulled out an eye patch. “ **Heh, Lisa.** ” she grinned, slipping it on. “ **Let’s fly,** **Archimicarus** **!** ” she pointed dramatically.   
Pearl stored the pouch away as the two young teens giggled. “ **Yeah, I have no idea...** ” she shook her head fondly. 

As they neared the warp pad, Amethyst’s belly grumbled. “ **Man,** **I’mma** **go to the Big Donut, have me an entire box ‘o’ day** **olds** **.** ” she laughed.   
Pearl opened her mouth, but stared at the warp pad in horror. “ **Wha** **?** ”   
They watched as the warp pad suddenly flashed bright red, faded back to blue, and turned red again. The flashing sped up noticeably, now staying red for longer.   
Pearl quickly picked Connie up. “ **Run!** ” she called, already jumping to the top of the stairs.   
Garnet grabbed Steven and followed her, Amethyst right behind them. 

As they returned to the arena floor, they heard the loud bang and skidded to a halt.   
“ **What’s going on?! Did the warp just** ** _explode_** **?!** ” Amethyst looked back towards the warp, shocked to see a large chunk of rubble fall away from the arena.   
“ **I-I don’t understand! Warp pads don’t usually blow up!** ” Pearl stammered.   
A loud rumbling noise below their feet drew their attention, and Pearl gasped. Looking over towards the edge, over which was a sheer drop, she winced as the arena suddenly lurched, a shudder running through it as thick smoke drifted up from the direction of the warp pad. “ **Oh** ** _stars_** **...** **The** **gravitron** **engine’s been damaged. The whole arena is going to blow...** ** _We have to jump_** **!** ” 

As the four stared at her, Pearl repositioned Connie over her shoulder and started running towards the far edge. Leaping up and out with all of her might, she turned in mid-air to see Garnet and Amethyst right behind her, Steven clinging tightly to Garnet’s neck. 

A loud roar tore through the air behind them, and a bright flash lit up the sky.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, that aint good. As for the gravitron engine... come on, it’s a floating arena. Something's gotta be holding that thing up...


	3. Explosive

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hey, how are the townies doing?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FYI, my doctor's appointment went good. I no longer have to wear my brace.  
> I have another appointment on Monday, with the physiotherapist.  
> But I don't have to see the surgeon again for another 6 weeks.
> 
> I am in a good mood, so you get this chapter, and maybe another one tomorrow, just to finish the set-up for the story.

**Beach City:**

Greg Universe whistled softly as he wiped the last of the water off the hood of the car. Sighing, he flicked the rag over his shoulder as he walked over towards the car door. “ **Okay, all done. That'll be... a fiver.** ” he shrugged.   
The driver handed him the bill and started the engine, driving off as Greg pocketed the money.   
As he started whistling again, Greg chuckled. “ **Man, I** **gotta** **write this down.** ” he started walking towards the car wash’s office, still whistling.   
As he reached for the door handle, a loud bang tore through the air, follow swiftly by a second one. Running back outside, he stared in terror at the thick black smoke rising from the far side of the cliff.   
“ **Steven?!** ” he yelled, his long brown hair streaming behind him as he ran towards the beach.

Greg ran panting around the cliff, wheezing desperately for air. As his son’s house came into sight, he paused to catch his breath as he took the scene in. A gaping hole was torn through the small building, the roof partially collapsed. Several of the support struts had given way, causing the house to slant dangerously. To his side, the remains of the washer and dryer were crumpled against the cliff wall, the stone hand of the temple blasted away into oblivion. “ **Steven?!** ” Greg called, desperately hoping that his boy wasn’t home that day.

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 **Beach City General Hospital:**    


“ **...** **so** **we’ll keep him under observation for the time being...** ” Priyanka pressed herself against the wall as a group of orderlies ran past. “ **Yes, it’s necessary. As I** ** _just_** **told you...** ” she paused. “ **Hello?** ” staring at the phone, she saw that the call had been dropped. “ **Ugh,** ** _typical_** **. Well, I least I don’t have to explain it again...** ” she muttered, putting the phone away.   
Suddenly the lights flickered and went out. “ **And a power cut. That’s just** ** _great_** **.** ”   
Marching to the front desk, she rapped on the clear window to get the receptionists attention. “ **Page Mr. Siler, and tell him to get the generator fired up, pronto.** ”   
The receptionist shook her head. “ **We’ve lost the P.A. system...** ”   
Priyanka sighed, running her hands through her hair. “ **Right, sorry. Rough day. Send an orderly to find him. We need that power back on in the ICU, asap.** ”   
The receptionist nodded frantically, running out of the cubicle to search for an orderly.

A nurse ran up to Priyanka, panting. “ **Dr** **Mahaswaran** **! I just heard that there’s been a** **report** **of explosions! One just out of town, in a field near an old farm, and two near the Beach City boardwalk.** ”   
Priyanka almost felt her heart drop. “ **The boardwalk?! Oh god... Any injuries?** ”   
The nurse shook her head. “ **None know of, but a small** **beachhouse** **has been reported to be on fire, and power is out across the city.** ”   
“ **A** **beachhouse** **? Near the lighthouse?!** ” she grabbed the nurse’s shoulder in a panic.   
The younger woman shook her head wildly. “ **I don’t know, that’s all I’ve heard!** ”

Priyanka released her and looked around at the small group of nurses, orderlies and a small handful of doctors who had gathered around them. To her relief, the lights flickered back on as the low droning hum of the generators rumbled through the building.   
“ **Right.** ” she nodded. “ **We have explosions on the boardwalk, and one in a field. No word yet on casualties, but with our lack of funding, we can only provide resources to one event. The boardwalk is a high foot traffic area, and takes priority** **over a field any day** **. Two ambulances, I’ll ride in the first. Dr. West, you man things here. We call each other the moment we have an idea of the situation.** ” Pulling her phone back out, she grunted. “ **That is, assuming I can get a signal. Does anybody have a signal?** ”   
Dr. West took out his phone and checked it, as others around them did the same.    
Priyanka sighed as everyone shook their heads. “ **It’s going to be one of those days, but we can handle this. Let’s move people!** ”

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**Ocean Town Boardwalk:**

Doug sat in his parked car, a window rolled down for air as he listened in on the police chatter on his radio.   
“ **Explosions on the --- City --- walk.** ” The sound of loud honking and a screech of tires drowned out the message, and Doug looked up just in time to see the two cars collide at the intersection. The white one spun around, slamming nose-first into a tree as the green car flipped over once and came to a rest on the metal crash barrier.   
Doug stared for a moment in shock. “ **Whoa...** ”   
Fumbling his seatbealt off, he darted out of the car and ran across to the nearest car, its left side wheels spinning lazily as they hang over the far side of the barrier.   
Doug forced the door open. “ **Are you okay?** ”   
The two occupants nodded dumbly, stunned by the suddenness of the crash. Slowly, they both climbed out of the vehicle, patting themselves in disbelief as they checked for injuries.

Doug ran towards the white car, struggling with the doors until he finally forced the right rear door open. “ **Hey, are you okay? Do you need a doctor?** ”   
The driver blinked the blood out of their eyes. “ **M-maybe...** ”   
Doug nodded. “ **Okay. Try not to move.** ” He ran back to his car, grabbing the radio. “ **Ambulance needed at the intersection of** **Adjunct** **and** **Paraell** **streets. Car accident, three victims. Two are able to walk, one is injured in vehicle. Response urgent.** ”   
Looking up, he noted with shock the darkened traffic lights. Clicking the radio again, he added. “ **Be advised, the traffic lights are out.** ”

Pulling out his mobile, he groaned at the lack of signal. “ **Great... just great.** ” he muttered. Noticing the two walking-wounded wandering half-stunned towards the road, he threw the phone into the front seat of his car and dashed over to them. “ **Hey! Come on, you two need to sit down. The ambulance is on its way.** ”

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**DeMayo** **Farm:**

Pumpkin ran into the barn, yapping and running in circles.   
“ **What’s going on,** **V** **eggiehead** **?** ” Peridot said in a low voice, nervously glancing at the sleeping Lapis Lazuli lying face-down in the hammock.   
Pumpkin ran behind the toilet morp, whimpering slightly.   
“ **Pumpkin?** ” Peridot dropped her paintbrush, concerned.

The sound of an explosion made her squawk, and Lapis toppled out of the hammock onto the floor with a yelp as Pumpkin whined with fear.   
“ **What are you doing, Peridot?!** ” Lapis stood angrily.   
“ **It wasn’t me!** ” the small green Gem yelled. “ **It came from** **outside** **!** ”

Cautiously, the two Gems looked outside, Pumpkin refusing to leave its spot behind the toilets, to see a cloud of smoke drifting over to them from their nearby field.   
As the two approached the smoking crater, they stared in shock.   
“ **Peridot... you’re a technician. Do warp pads... usually explode?** ”   
Peridot shook her head. “ ** _NO_** **! They’re supposed to be entirely safe, provided nobody’s dense enough to leave the stream and get stranded in warp space.** ” she started pacing. “ **Oh stars... I've never even** ** _heard_** **of one exploding before! I-I don’t understand!** ” she wailed.

Lapis glanced out towards the ocean, finally taking in the dense smoke near the shore.   
Her eyes widened. “ ** _Steven!_** ” she gasped, summoning her wings and launching herself into the air.   
Peridot paused and stared after her. “ **He... has two warp pads near his dwelling...** ” she murmured. Shaking herself, she ran back to the barn and grabbed a trash can lid. “ **Stay, Pumpkin!** ” she called back as she jumped onto the lid and started towards the temple.   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mr. Siler is based on Sgt. Siler, from Stargate SG-1. Let’s say it’s his... cousin who didn’t join the military... Yeah, that works.


	4. Panic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kiss kiss, fall in love...

“ **Steven, bubble!** ” Pearl yelled, flinging Connie towards the boy.    
Grabbing her arms, his gem glowed brightly and the clear pink-tinted bubble came up around them just in time for a fist-sized piece of rubble to ricochet off.   
Amethyst glowed as she shapeshifted into an owl, darting out of the way of another jagged piece of stone. 

Suddenly, a line of crackling electricity passed over them, and with pained expressions and a small scream from Amethyst, their forms dissipated in simultaneous puffs of smoke, their gems now free-falling through the air. 

“ ** _NO!_** ” Steven yelled, dropping the bubble and reaching desperately for his family as they tumbled helplessly just out of reach.   
Connie grabbed hold of him as his headband flew off. “ **Steven, we need to float!** ” she yelled over the rush of air, her eyepatch flipping up as it was ripped away by the rush of wind revealing her eyes looking down fearfully at the ever-approaching ground.    
Steven, tears in his eyes, nodded. Clinging onto her, he concentrated and started kicking his legs. His gem glowed faintly, and their descent started to slow. 

As they hit the ground, they tumbled slightly, landing on their backs with groans. Connie opened her eyes, which widened in fear. “ **Steven,** ** _RUN_** **!** ”   
Jumping up, she grabbed his right arm and started dragging him to his feet as the shadow of the largest piece of the arena darkened around them.   
A glint ahead, and Connie put on a burst of speed, reaching down and grabbing the small red gem as she ran past.   
Steven paused and dove onto a glint of blue a few metres away, jumping to his feet and panting as he caught up to Connie. 

As they made it to the thick dark forest of trees, the wreckage of the Sky Arena hit the ground behind them.   
Steven grabbed Connie and brought up his bubble, holding her closely as the force of multiple impacts shook the ground. A wave of dirt hit the bubble, and they were rolled deeper into the forest, coming to rest in some thick brush. His thoughts turned to Amethyst and Pearl, their gems now lying helpless in the field as he sobbed. 

 

 

 

 

 

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After what seemed like an eternity, silence fell.   
Sitting up, Connie looked down and saw that she was still holding onto Ruby’s gem. Turning it over in her hand, she nodded. “ **She doesn’t look damaged.** ”   
Steven opened his hand and almost leapt up, frantically checked Sapphire. “ **I don’t see any cracks...** ” he whispered, voice breaking slightly.   
Connie handed Ruby’s gem over, and Steven gently slipped them both into his right-side pocket.   
Connie tapped Steven’s shoulder. “ **Let’s try to find them.** ” she whispered.   
Not trusting his voice, Steven nodded, wiping his face as he lowered the bubble.  

As the two kids stepped onto the now devastated field, they stared wide-eyed in horror. Large chunks of rubble littered the broken landscape, with walls of dirt thrown up forming impact craters. The largest piece, which they had somehow managed to outrun only by sheer luck, towered ahead of them, and as they watched, a piece broke off from it and smashed onto the ground. A small stream that had run through the field was now blocked by another piece of rubble, its banks already overflowing.   
Steven sobbed. “ **...no...** ” he whispered.   
Connie held his hand. “ **We’ll find them, Steven. We’ll find them...** ” 

As Steven started lifting small pieces of rubble that were still larger than himself and searching through crushed dirt, Connie squared her shoulders. Carefully, she eyed off the largest piece of rubble and plotted out a route. “ **Steven. I’m** **gonna** **try to get a better view from up there, okay? Catch me if I yell.** ”   
Steven looked over and nodded as he moved closer to what he now recognised as part of the stone viewing stands of the arena.   
Connie started climbing, slowly but deliberately, her feet slipping every so often. 

After a few minutes, her arms aching, she scrambled to the top and caught her breath. “ **I... am** ** _never_** **doing that again...** ” she groaned, rubbing her shoulders. Looking down, she saw that the other side of the rubble had a fair but manageable slope, and she figured that she could safely slide down that way if she had to.   
With a nod, Connie waved down to Steven before she gave her attention to the surroundings, her eyes searching for any hint of a gem’s gleam. 

Steven sniffled as he watched Connie climb. Once she had settled herself at the top, he saw her wave down at him. Assuming that she was fine for now, he waved back and resumed his search. 

As the sun came out from a cloud, he paused, a small glint catching his eye. Running towards it, he slipped to his knees and reached into the half-crushed bush, his finger sliding briefly against his target before finally wrapping around it. “ ** _I FOUND AMETHYST!_** ” he yelled, holding the purple gem up triumphantly. 

Connie heard his yelled and twisted slightly to look. Seeing the glint of purple in his waving hand, she grinned. “ ** _AWESOME!_** ” she yelled back. “ **Now, we just need to find Pearl...** ” she muttered, turning back to her own search.   
Steven turned the gem over and over in his hands, searching for any cracks or damage. Finally, he sighed, satisfied that she had survived the fall intact. As he slipped Amethyst’s gem into his left pocket, his other hand felt to confirm that Ruby and Sapphire were still safe in the right. “ **Now for Pearl...** ” 

Connie’s eyes roamed over the ruined land below, her eyes shielded from the sun by her right hand. As she checked along the blocked stream, she spotted a small hint of white on brown before a cloud rolled over the sun, dimming the light. Scrambling to her feet, she squinted at the spot, uncertain. Gritting her teeth, she started sliding down the slope, picking up speed.   
Steven glanced back and couldn’t see Connie. Panic briefly set in at the thought that she had slipped and fallen as he began to run. 

Connie hit the bottom of the slope, rolled uncontrollably across the muddy crushed ground. With a groan, she sat up, shaking her head slightly. Carefully, she got up and started heading towards the stream.   
Steven ran around the edge of the ruined stands and sighed audibly with relief as he saw Connie walking. 

Connie reached the muddy over-flowing stream and knelt as she started digging through the mud. “ **Where are** **you?...** ” she muttered. Her hands felt something small and round, and her breath hitched, but she sighed as her hands pulled up a brown pebble, rubbed smooth by the stream. Tossing it aside, she started digging some more.   
Steven stood beside her, his heart felt like it was behind his gem. 

As Connie found and tossed away pebble after pebble, she moved a short distance along the stream and started to dig anew.   
Her fingers closed against another pebble, and she sighed as she went to toss it away. A strange raised area around it caught her attention, and as she examined it more closely, she gasped. “ **I found Pearl!** ”   
Steven sloshed ankle deep in muddy water as Connie stood and moved closer to the stream. Carefully, she washed the mud off the pale white gem, turning it over in her hands as she inspected it. “ **I don’t see any cracks!** ” she called back. 

After cleaning the gem off as best as she could manage, the two kids moved away from the stream, sitting on some smaller pieces of rubble. Carefully, they inspected the gems again, making a more thorough inspection this time.   
‘ _Hmm... No visible damage... but there could be internal..._ ’ Connie glanced at Steven. “ **Hey, just to be on the safe side, you should heal them. Just in case there’s something we can’t see.** ”   
Steven nodded, spitting on both of his hands and clasping Ruby’s gem between them. He then did the same to both Sapphire and Amethyst, but paused. “ **Um... Pearl** ** _really_** **doesn’t like spit...** ” he glanced back at the stream. “ **Uhh** **... I know! I’ll heal her, and then rinse her off. She won’t mind that, right?** ” he asked, standing.   
Connie nodded. “ **I think she’ll know that we were just worried about her.** ” she watched as Steven walked back to the stream. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These poor little babies are scared and all alone... *sobs* Why did I do that to them?! I am a horrible person! 
> 
>  
> 
> That's it until next weekend. See ya then!


	5. Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Welp, back to Beach City.

**BEACH CITY:**

Ronaldo sobbed uncontrollably on the ground, hugging his laptop desperately. “ _ **No! My blog!**_ ” he wailed.   
Peedee stood nearby, sighing as he checked his now dead phone. “ **Oh brother...** ” he muttered, rolling his eyes.   
Behind them, their father returned from Funland. “ **Yeah, their power and phones are out as well...** ” he sighed. “ **Harold doesn’t seem to mind though.** ”

On the boardwalk, Nanafua was attempting to handle the situation, her Nanaphone still somehow working despite everything. “ **Quit staring at your phones and look around you! Help your neighbours!** ” she called to the confused and worried crowd gathered around the table she was standing on, a chair nearby for access. “ **We are trying to figure out this situation as best we can. For now, we need to stay calm!** ”   
Ronaldo’s wails rose up over her voice. “ ** _Why did the Snake People do this?!_** ”   
Nanafua sighed and lowered the Nanaphone. “ **And someone give that boy his medication...** ” she muttered under her breath.

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As the ambulance screeched to a halt near the end of the boardwalk, Priyanka hopped out, carrying her emergency medical bag. “ **Okay, let's find out more about the situation here, but be prepared for anything.** ”   
Hearing the sound of an amplified voice, Priyanka led her small team towards the sound.   
“ **... stay calm!** ” said an older, very short woman on a loudspeaker.   
“ ** _Why did the Snake People do this?!_** ” a boy wailed in the distance.   
Priyanka walked over. “ **We’re from the hospital. There was a report of at least two explosions. Are there any injuries?** ”   
Nanafua looked towards her from her table. “ **None that have been reported yet. Just a kid upset about his** **interwebs** **dying...** ”   
Priyanka sighed with relief. “ **Oh, thank goodness.** ” Turning towards the team who looked similarly relieved, she nodded. “ **Okay, good hustle. One ambulance should return to the hospital immediately, just in case. We're understaffed as it is...** ” she muttered. “ **The other should slowly cruise the streets, keeping an eye out in case anybody flags you down. With the phones out, anybody needing help will be sticking close to the roads, hoping for someone to pick them up. Stay alert.** ”   
“ **What about you, ma’am?** ” an orderly spoke up.   
Priyanka sighed. “ **My daughter was visiting her friend** **here** **today. I just need to go check on her, then I’ll get a lift back.** ”

As the team moved off, Priyanka sighed.   
Kiki looked at her. “ **Uh, hey... Your daughter’s Connie, right? Steven’s friend?** ”   
Priyanka glanced at her. “ **Yes, that’s right.** ”   
Kiki and Nanafua glanced at each other nervously.    
“ **What?** ” Priyanka looked between them.   
Kiki sighed. “ **Uhh** **... We haven’t had a chance to check yet, but... Those explosions came from around Steven’s house.** ” she pointed towards the cliff.

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On the beach, Greg searched frantically for any sign of life in the badly damaged beachhouse.   
Behind him, a blue blur swooped down. “ **Steven!** ” Lapis called frantically, her troubled eyes roaming over the wreckage.   
Turning, Greg sighed. “ **I don’t know! Connie was visiting today, they might have been out training...** ”   
Lapis stared at him. “ **Where?** ”   
Greg shook his head. “ **I** **dunno** **... Some old Gem ruins, floating somewhere. An arena of sorts? That’s all he told me!** ”   
Lapis looked out towards the horizon. “ **I’ll find him.** ” Her wings spread out from her gem and she took off with a rush of salty air.

A yell and a metallic clang sounded, and Greg turned to find that Peridot had crashed into the side of the cliff. Shaking herself, she stood and ran over, only falling over once along the way. “ **Greg-human! Where is Steven?!** ”   
Greg sighed. “ **I don’t know. He may have been training with Connie and Pearl today, at some floating ruined arena. Lapis just went to try and find him.** ” he pointed at the small speck on the horizon, which vanished soon after. “ **But I don’t know if it moves around, or stays in the same general area... But Garnet’s future vision could** **also** **have given them enough warning to get into the temple...** ”   
Peridot looked at the damaged building. Standing on her trashcan lid, she rose up, inspecting the damage. “ **Hmm... There is a sizable piece of overhead building covering in front of the temple hatchway. It may be preventing egress if they are inside.** ”   
Greg stepped back to get a better look at the area. “ **You mean the fallen roof could be blocking the door, stopping them from leaving?** ”   
Peridot huffed. “ **Yes, that is exactly what I said. Pay attention.** ”

“ **Connie?!** ”   
They turned, Peridot falling off the trashcan lid, which promptly fell onto her head.   
Priyanka rounded the edge of the cliff, her face ashen as she caught sight of the beachhouse. “ ** _Connie?!_** ” she called.   
Greg held out his hands soothingly. “ **We don’t think they were in there.** ” he started. “ **There’s no sign of anybody. They may have been out training, or even inside the temple. There’s some rubble blocking the door out here, which Peridot said could be stopping them from leaving, so we’ll need to figure out how to shift that before we assume the worse. They may even call us soon.** ”   
Priyanka sighed and caught her breath. “ **Right... I don’t suppose you have a signal on your phone?** ”   
Greg slipped his phone from his pocket and stared at it. “ **Umm... It won’t turn on...** ” he muttered.   
“ **The phones are down for everyone, it seems... I haven’t heard from Doug or Connie...** ” she added sadly.   
Greg sighed, putting the now useless phone away. “ **Well, I don’t know where Doug is... But the kids are most likely with the Gems. There’s no way they’ll let anything happen to them. Besides, Garnet’s with them. She has... well, she can** **kinda** **see the future. So, if they’re out there somewhere, stranded, she can keep everyone safe. If they’re inside the temple, well...** ” he paused, glancing up at the giant woman carved into the cliffside. “ **I was never allowed to go in there, even when Rose was around. She said it was too dangerous for humans...** ” at Priyanka’s gasp, he added. “ **...But Rose was easily distracted, and was probably worried she’d leave me in there by accident. Or that Pearl would arrange a** **convenient** **‘accident.’ We didn’t get along back then...** ” he shrugged. “ **If the kids are in there, then Connie is with all of the Gems. She's probably having loads of fun exploring their rooms, and whatever else is in there. They would never let her get hurt.** ”

Peridot waved a pair of cans in front of them. “ **Humans require fluids and sucrose** **for energy** **, correct?** ”   
Priyanka nodded. “ **Well, yes.** ”   
“ **Then drink. We have a Steven and a Connie to save.”** she dropped the cans of carbonated apple juice, which Greg barely caught, as she stepped on the trashlid and soared above them. “ **Now, does anybody have any multi-stranded wall-climbing cordage?** ”   
Priyanka stared at the small floating green girl. “ **Huh?** ”   
“ **I** **dunno** **...** ” Greg shook his head. “ **But,** **I should have a rope somewhere in the van. I’ll go get it.** ” he quickly gulped down his drink and ran off.   
Peridot huffed. “ **Hmm... this** ** _‘rope’_** **will have to do...** ”

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As Onion walked along the wharf, dragging his baseball bat behind, he heard a small sound. Jumping down onto the sand, he looked under the wooden structure, bat raised and ready.

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" **Okay, I’ve found the rope.** ” Greg called as he hoisted the coil off his shoulder.   
Peridot huffed. “ **I thought you said you didn’t have any multi-stranded wall-climbing cordage?** ”   
Greg looked at her, then back at the rope. “ **Oh, I guess it** **’s** **the same thing. People usually just call it a rope though... sorry...** ”   
“ **Humans...** ” Peridot grumbled.

A small boy with a faded red blanket tied around his shoulder like a cape ran up to them, tugging on Greg’s shirt.   
“ **Oh, hey, Onion. Is everything okay?** ” Greg knelt down.   
Onion pointed along the beach in the direction of the car wash.   
Greg glanced over. “ **Is someone hurt? Your mother?** ”   
Onion shook his head and point again, tugging on Greg’s shirt once more.   
“ **Okay little buddy.** ” Greg stood and glanced at Peridot. “ **I just** **gotta** **go see what going on, okay?** ”   
Priyanka nodded. “ **I’ll come with you, just in case there’s an injury. I just need to stop by the boardwalk first. I... left my medical kit there when I ran here...** ” she blushed slightly.   
Greg nodded. “ **Okay. We'll wait for you at the car wash.** ”

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As they followed the small boy past Funland, they spotted Mr. Smiley getting some much need rest. He had fallen asleep on top of the ring toss bench, more than relieved that the lack of power meant that he no longer needed to keep everything running by himself.

Nearing the wharf, Onion pointed to the dark space underneath.   
“ **Under there, huh?** ” Greg knelt down to look. “ **Lion!** ”   
Curled up in the space beneath the wharf was the large magical pink lion. At the sound of Greg’s voice, he lifted his head, revealing the small Cat Steven curled up beneath, shaking slightly.   
Greg leaned back a little. “ **Oh wow... Garnet will be relieved. I... I didn’t even think of her kitten...** ” he admitted, shame crossing his face.   
Priyanka placed the bag on the sand and knelt down to see for herself. “ **They must have hidden here, or maybe sensed something was going to happen... I’m not a veterinarian, but they don’t look hurt. Scared maybe... but no visible injuries.** ”   
Greg placed a hand on the wharf above him. “ **Hey, Lion. Do you know where Steven and Connie are?** ”

Priyanka glanced at him with concern. “ **Uh, Greg... I don’t think he’s going to tell you that...** ”   
Lion yawned and gently licked the tiny scared kitten before settling his head back down protectively.   
Greg sighed. “ **Well, on the plus side, if the kids were in real danger, Lion would have gone to find them the moment we were here to look after Cat Steven. He’s done it before.** ” he added at Priyanka’s sceptical glance.   
Turning towards Onion, Greg smiled. “ **Hey, do you think you could find some fish or something for the little kitty?** ”   
Onion looked thoughtful for a moment before he gave a thumbs up and ran off.

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As the two returned to the beachhouse, Greg paused and sighed sadly before turning towards the water.   
Priyanka watched as he bent down and picked up a small pinkish-red shirt with a bright yellow star on the front, the hem visibly scorched. Looking out, she spotted more similar shirts drifting in the waves along with some pants, a TV set and a single stuffed bear.

On the boardwalk, Buck, Jenny, Sour Scream and Sadie looked out at the scene. Glancing at each other, Buck and Sour Cream nodded and started walking down towards the shore, Jenny and Sadie joining them as they waded into the water and started collecting as many things as they could find. Together, the teens made a chain, retrieving the scattered items and piling them on the sand.   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Curse those Snake People. *shakes fist angrily* 
> 
> See, I didn’t kill off Cat Steven. I’m not completely evil.


	6. Loss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Okay, back to the people we actually care about...  
> ;P

**_ONE HOUR LATER..._ ** 

As the two kids sat huddled together on the stone, the small purple gem in Steven’s lap started to glow. Watching as it rose up and hovered, Steven quickly handed the other three gems to Connie, his eyes focused on the reforming Amethyst. As she finally dropped to the ground, her hands flew up to her head, clutching the sides with a moan. “ ** _What just happened?!_** ” she squeaked.   
Steven wrapped his arms around her with a sob. “ **Everyone** **poofed** **!** ”   
Amethyst returned the hug. “ **Man, everyone?** ” glancing at the three gems in Connie’s hands. “ **Damn... I don’t even** ** _know_** **what hit us...** ” she sighed.   
Pausing only to claim Pearl’s gem from Connie’s hands, Amethyst sat down on the other side of Steven. She laid one arm over his shoulders as the other gently rubbed a thumb across the pale white oval in her hand. 

“ **Amethyst?** ”   
“ **Yeah buddy?** ” Amethyst looked up.   
Steven glanced over at her. “ **You... didn’t change anything this time.** ” he noted.   
Amethyst glanced down at herself. “ **Oh. Huh. That’s... odd.** ” she shook her head. “ **I’ve been** **poofed** **a lot of times, and I mean a** ** _lot_** **... but never like that. It felt... weird. And not the** **kinda** **weird I usually like. I just... I remember darkness... Like, nothingness...** ”   
Connie glanced over at her. “ **Maybe that weird electrical stuff made you just... pass out, but instead of knocking you out like a human, it knocked you all into your gems?** ”   
Amethyst shrugged. “ **I have no idea... You** **r** **guess is as good as mine. Until Pearl comes back, anyway...** ”   
Steven sniffed. “ **She’s not** **gonna** **take two weeks again, is she?** ”   
“ **Nah...** ” Amethyst shook her head as she pulled him in closer. “ **Last time, she knew we were all safe, so she took her sweet-ass time. We were all falling from exploding stuff. I bet she’ll come back as soon as she can, just to fuss over us.** ” 

Eventually, as the sun sank lower in the sky, Connie gave a jolt. “ **Hey...** ” she said, as the red gem glowed brightly. She held out her hand as the gem started to rise up, and after a moment Ruby dropped down with a shake of her head. “ **Ugh, that felt** ** _terrible_** **!** ” she almost screamed as she rubbed her face.   
Steven suddenly wrapped his arms around her. Ruby looked briefly startled, but quickly returned the hug. “ **You okay, Steven?** ”   
“ **Yeah...** ” Steven nodded.   
Ruby looked around, finally noticing the blue gem Connie was still holding. “ **Sapphire too?!** ”   
Amethyst shrugged. “ **It got all of us, dude. ‘** **Cept** **the kids.** ”   
Connie held the blue gem out to her with a smile.    
“ **Thanks, Connie.** ” Ruby sighed as she took her wife back, sitting down on the ground as she kissed the gem. 

It was barely half-an-hour later when Sapphire returned. Ruby grabbed her and lifted her into a hug, spinning her around happily.   
“ **Ruby, one moment.** ” Sapphire place a hand on Ruby's cheek.   
“ **Huh? What wrong,** **Saffy** **?** ” Ruby put Sapphire back onto the ground with a look of concern.   
Sapphire straightened her ruffled dress out with her hands. “ **Steven wants a hug first.** ” she grinned as she turned and opened her arms.   
Steven dashed forwards and she closed her arms around him.    
“ **We’re okay, Steven. Pearl’s okay as well, and will come back as soon as she is able.** ” Sapphire said as she soothingly brushed the back of his head. 

Ruby waited nearby until Steven released Sapphire. “ **I** **wanna** **hug Garnet now.** ” the boy exclaimed.   
The two small Gems grinned. “ **Good, cause we** **wanna** **_be_** **Garnet now.** ” Ruby laughed.   
Sapphire giggled as Ruby lifted her up.   
Steven covered his eyes with one hand as the two grinned and kissed each other, their gems glowing brightly as they fused in a flash of bright white light.   
Garnet landed back on the ground, and immediately reached out and picked Steven up. “ **I’m glad that everyone’s okay.** ” she muttered as he latched onto her neck. Glancing at Pearl’s gem, still resting in Amethyst’s hand, she nodded. “ **Even Pearl. She may take a while, she usually does, but she’ll be back.** ” 

“ **So.** **..** ” Connie began. “ **Does anyone know what happened with the warp pad?** ”   
Garnet sat down, Steven in her lap and sighed. “ **Nope.** ” she said simply as she phased her sunglasses back on.   
“ **Why would it blow up like that, anyway?** ” Amethyst sighed, staring down at the pearl in her hands.   
Garnet gave a shrug. “ **I** **dunno** **. Pearl and Peridot are the technicians. Most Gems only know how to warp. How the warp system actually works...** ” she shook her head. “ **... is a mystery to me. I've never been required to know. But what I do know is this: we’re stranded here.** ”   
Connie gasped. “ **Oh no, I didn’t even think of that... I’d better call home, let my parents know what’s happened...** ” Standing, she pulled her phone from her pocket and stared at it for a moment. “ **Steven, check your phone...** ”   
Garnet reached into his back pocket and collected the device, handing it to Steven. “ **Thank you.** ” he said, eyes turning towards his phone.   
After pressing all of the various buttons for a moment, he shook his head. “ **That’s weird... my phone won’t turn on...** ”   
Connie shook her head. “ **Neither will mine...** ” she held up the device, the screen blank.   
“ **Did they get damaged when you landed? Cause those things break** **real** **easy...** ” Amethyst looked over.   
The two kids looked at each other. “ **Not that I know of...** ” Steven scratched his cheek thoughtfully.   
“ **I didn’t hear anything break... And the screens okay. That's usually the first thing to go...** ” Connie sighed as she put the useless phone away. “ **S** **o, we’re stranded, we can’t call home to let our parents know we’re okay, and warp pads can apparently explode for no reason...** ”   
“ **...Must be** **Mon** **day. I could never get the hang of** **Mon** **days...** ” Amethyst muttered. 

As they sat there, contemplating the situation, Garnet glanced up. “ **We should move. It’ll rain soon.** ” Looking around, she took note of the largest piece of rubble, unaware that Connie had climbed it earlier. “ **There.** ”   
As they moved towards it, they heard a low rumble of thunder. Garnet picked up a few smaller pieces of rubble and piled them against the large piece, forming a crude shelter just big enough for two. “ **It’ll have to do.** ” she sighed.   
Just then, the sky opened up, and they were pelted with large drops of rain. Squealing, the two kids ran under the makeshift shelter.   
Garnet sat down outside, hands held loosely in front of her.   
“ **Are you two** **gonna** **be okay out there?** ” Steven called.   
Amethyst snorted. “ **Yeah, bro. We hang out in the rain all the time. Even Pearl likes it. She even dances out in it sometimes.** ”   
Garnet nodded. “ **The important thing is that you two are dry. There's fair chance you’ll get sick if you get** **too** **soaked today.** ” she reached up and adjusted her sunglasses.   
“ **Future vision.** ” Steven nodded at Connie.   
“ **Ah. Gotcha.** ” 

 

 **_THE NEXT MORNING..._ ** 

As Steven stretched and yawned, he felt his fist hit something solid. Finally opening his eyes, he looked up to find he had collided with Garnet’s face.   
“ **Whoops, sorry Garnet.** ” he said sheepishly, drawing his arm back.    
“ **For what?** ” Garnet said with a smirk.   
Hearing giggling, Steven looked around curiously. He spotted Connie sitting on Garnet’s shoulder, looking tired, with Rose’s sword slung across her back and a hand over her mouth as she smirked. He also took note of the thick deep forest they were walking through. “ **Where are we, anyway?** ”   
“ **Connie, duck.** ” Garnet stooped beneath a branch, Connie leaning back as not to be swatted off her perch. “ **In the forest. The rain and the blocked stream were causing the area to become flooded. It was getting close to where you were sleeping, so we moved. Future vision showed me that there is another warp pad in this direction, so...** ”   
“ **Okay.** ” Steven nodded in understanding.   
Garnet paused and placed him on the ground. “ **Don’t go in too far. You'll get lost.** ” she said knowingly.   
Steven looked confused briefly before he looked down with a blush. “ **Ah geez.** ” he sighed before he darted back the way they came for a few steps before slipping into the trees. “ **No looking!** ” he called back.   
“ **Wouldn’t dream of it.** ” Garnet smiled.   
Amethyst snorted. “ **We changed his diapers. We’ve already seen it.** ”   
Connie blushed and snickered. “ **I don’t think he wants to know that.** ” 

As Steven wiped his hands with a wet leaf in an attempt to clean them, the small pale gem in Amethyst’s hands glowed and rose up. “ **Pearl’s coming back!** ” Amethyst called.   
Steven rushed out of the trees, drying his hands on his jeans.   
“ **She’s not usually this quick.** ” Amethyst noted.   
Garnet nodded. “ **It’s not common for her to be this quick, no. But she can hurry if she there’s an emergency, or she’s worried about everyone. She suffers for it though.** ”    
Pearl reformed with a grimace as she wobbled unsteadily. “ **Well, that was unpleasant.** ” she murmured before opening her eyes. “ **Is everyone okay?** ” she asked, looking around at them as Steven latched onto her.   
Garnet nodded, placing one hand on Pearl’s shoulder. “ **Yes. You came back quickly...** ”   
Pearl nodded as she looked around. “ **Yes... I’m okay though, just a little unsteady...** ” Glancing down, she took note of Steven's bare feet. “ **Where are your sandals?** ”   
Connie looked down. “ **I think they came off as we were falling...** ”   
Pearl nodded. “ **Ah. That makes sense.** ” 

Suddenly, a look of dread wiped across her face. “ **Oh... oh no...** ” Releasing Steven, she handed him over to Amethyst before she turned and looked back the way they had come. Looking around her, she ran towards a tall pine tree, leaping up and grabbing onto the branches. “ **Nonononono** **...** ” they heard her chanting over and over as she climbed.   
As stray branches and pine needles fell, Amethyst looked confused. “ **What’s she doing?** ”   
Garnet opened her mouth, but Connie answered. “ **That arena meant a lot to her...** ” she sighed sadly. 

As Pearl reached the top of the tree, her legs shaking slightly from the exertion, she stared into the sky with sheer horror, her hands clasped over her mouth. As they watched, she curled up on a branch and started to shake, burying her face into her knees.   
Steven looked up with concern. “ **Shouldn’t we...** ”   
Garnet placed a hand on his shoulder. “ **Pearl... needs a moment. She’ll call if she needs help getting down.** ”   
Amethyst kept her eyes on Pearl, ready to catch her if she lost her footing. “ **I know she was angry and upset when me and Steven trashed the ruins when we rumbled... But I don’t get why she’s so upset...** ”   
Steven glanced up at the tree. “ **She said that the arena was where she first learned how to be a knight. So, I guess it’s where her and mum first started the rebellion?** ” he rubbed his gem through his shirt. “ **It was an important place to her.** ”   
“ **Oh... That makes sense.** ”  

After a while, Pearl slowly climbed down, her eyes downcast. She had barely touched the ground when Amethyst wrapped her arms around the slender Gem. “ **I’m sorry your place got wrecked...** ” she whispered softly.   
Garnet stepped forwards and placed a hand on Pearl’s back as Steven hugged her from the side.   
Pearl sniffed. “ **So am I...** ” she whispered sadly. 

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“ **Hey Pearl?** ” Amethyst glanced up as the thin Gem’s sniffling quietened.   
“ **Yes, Amethyst?** ”   
Amethyst glanced up at Garnet. “ **We all got** **poofed** **. Like, at the same time. What even happened?** ”   
Connie nodded down, still perched on Garnet’s shoulder. “ **Yeah, and our phones won’t turn on.** ”   
“ **Oh.** ” Pearl glanced back towards the wreckage of the Sky Arena. “ **An EMP. Electromagnetic Pulse.** ” she clarified. Reaching up, she summoned her own phone. “ **Hmm... Mine’s still working, it was protected by my gem... However, I don’t have a signal.** ” The kids sighed as she stored it away. “ **But that’s likely because of our remote location.** ”   
“ **Pearl? What’s an** **elect...** **What’s** **a** **EMP?** ” Steven asked.   
Pearl glanced down at him. “ **Put simply: It’s an intense electric discharge. Humans usually only think it happens with a nuclear explosion, but solar flares can cause them as well. There are other causes, of course, but in this case...** ” she sighed, glancing back again. “ **The EMP from the warp pad’s explosion wasn’t strong enough to affect us. However, that combined with the shock wave of the blast destabilised the arena’s** **Gravitron** **Engine, which allowed it to float. That caused a much larger pulse when it exploded, which was sadly enough to poof us. It basically had the same effect as a Destabiliser, destroying our forms, but apparently preventing us from adjusting our forms.** ” she glanced around at their unchanged outfits. “ **Either one could have damaged your phones, but if the larger one was strong enough to take us out, it most likely destroyed their delicate circuitry.** ” 

Glancing around, she took note of the forest. “ **So, I assume you’re trying to go to the nearest warp pad?** ”   
Garnet nodded. “ **Yeah.** ”   
Pearl smirked. “ **Check your future vision. You are off course.** ” she pointed more to the north, off the path and into the trees. “ **The warp pad is that way.** ”   
Garnet looked over and blushed. “ **Well, I don’t have the system memorised...** ”   
Pearl rolled her eyes. “ **Then it’s a good thing that I regenerated when I did.** ” she nodded as she slipped out of the group hug and started walking north.   
“ **Smug little...** ” Garnet grumbled as Amethyst snickered.   
“ **I heard that.** ” Pearl called back, making Garnet jump slightly as Steven, Connie and Amethyst laughed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Garnet and Pearl have been friends for more than 5000 years.  
> They totally banter and snark at each other like sisters.  
> I cannot be convinced otherwise.
> 
> See ya next weekend!


	7. System Error

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Uh oh, they're in trouble...

**_A FEW HOURS LATER..._ **

As they reached a small clearing, they found a shallow crater and several large lumps of clear blue crystal, smaller pieces of which seemed to be embedded into the surrounding trees.    
Amethyst whistled. “ **Whoa... What happened here?** ” she muttered as she kicked a lump of clear blue crystal aside.   
Pearl stared at the crater, shaking her head numbly. “ **This... is impossible...** ”   
Glancing up at her, Amethyst shrugged. “ **So, we go around this to reach the warp. It** **aint** **that big a deal, P.** ”   
Pearl stammered. “ **Amethyst... Th-this** ** _was_** **the warp pad.** ”

The group fell silent, staring around the clearing. Steven noticed the lines and flat panels he had gotten used to seeing on the warp pad at home.   
“ **Did... did all of the warp pads explode?** ” Connie nervously asked.   
Almost as one, the group gasped.    
“ **Steven’s house!** ” Connie glanced down at him from her perch on Garnet’s shoulder.   
“ **My room!** ” Steven's lip gave a wobble.   
Pearl started pacing. “ **The temple!** ”    
“ **Cat Steven!** ” Garnet looked panicked. “ **I-I can’t see...** ”   
Amethyst groaned. “ **Man, why did you guys put two warps there?** ”   
Pearl paused to huff at her. “ **Well, we didn’t know that they were going to start** ** _exploding_** **, now did we?! Even _Garnet_ couldn’t have seen that coming!**”

Amethyst stepped back, eyes downcast.   
Pearl took a deep, albeit unnecessary breath, and tried to calm down. “ **I’m sorry for yelling, Amethyst. This has been a** ** _very_** **upsetting day...** ” she sighed. Reaching up, she summoned her phone again. “ **And I still don’t have a signal, so we can’t call anyone to find out about the house...** ” she rubbed her gem briefly.   
“ **Hey.** ” Connie spoke up. “ **Sometimes, when I don’t have a signal, I can occasionally send a text message. It sends itself when it** **’** **s in** **the** **range** **of a cell tower. If you send one to Beach City, it’ll probably get there before we do...** ”   
Pearl glanced at the phone in her hand. “ **I... don’t know how to do that.** ” she admitted.   
Amethyst chuckled. “ **Ya** **mean you’ve had that thing all this time, and haven’t done anything with it?** ”   
Pearl looked away, blushing. “ **No. I’ve used it to check the time...** ” she murmured.   
Ignoring Amethyst’s snickers, Connie reached down. “ **Here, I’ll show you. Maybe we can send one to our parent’s too, let them know we’re all okay.** ”

After a brief tutorial, during which Pearl got very annoyed at the character limit, Pearl finally nodded. “ **Okay, how about this. It says it’s within the limit: Greg. All okay. Warp pad gone. Stranded, walking home. Cat Steven – Lion – house - okay? Will call at first chance.** ” As they nodded, Pearl sighed. “ **I still don’t understand why messages have to be so short? How can anyone get anything done that way?** ” she muttered in frustration.   
Steven shrugged. “ **People just... keep things short.** ”   
Connie nodded. “ **We use a lot of contractions, abbreviations and slang... Oh, and emojis.** ”   
Steven grinned. “ **Yeah, emojis are awesome, cause instead of saying ‘I don’t feel good’, you can just have sad face.** ”   
As she hit the send button, Pearl huffed. “ **Well, hopefully they’ll understand it.** ” she glanced down at the phone and then at Connie. “ **It hasn’t sent... But I’ll send it to your both of you parent’s phone as well, hopefully someone will get it.** ” After tapping away on the screen for a short while, she sighed. “ **Right, done. I may have to take it back out when we’re nearer to civilisation, just to see if we have a signal, but for the time being, that’s about all I can do with this.** ” she nodded before putting the phone away again.

Pearl looked around the clearing. “ **Hmmm... Steven?** ”   
He glanced up at her. “ **Yeah Pearl?** ”   
“ **Would you like to try fixing the warp? It's okay if you’re not sure, but...** ”   
Steven looked around at the various lumps of crystal with uncertainty. “ **Uhhh** **...** ”    
Amethyst picked up the piece she had kicked earlier. “ **Pearl, it’s pretty trashed.** ”   
“ **I know.** ” Pearl nodded. “ **But if there’s even the slight possibility of getting back tonight, we should at least try it.** ” glancing back at Steven, she smiled. “ **I think he can do it. He keeps surprising us, after all.** ”   
Steven looked at the piece in Amethyst’s hands. “ **Yeah, Okay. I’ll try it.** ”   
Pearl nodded. “ **Good. Let’s see...** ” Looking around, she nodded. “ **Yes. We’ll have to reassemble it as best we can, and try to make sure we have as much as possible first. Garnet, start pulling chunks out of the trees. Amethyst, the large** **loose** **pieces. Connie, the little pieces. I’ll take the medium, and direct you on where everything should go. Steven, you should sit down and rest up. Being tired might affect your powers.** ” Reaching up, she summoned a bottle of water, followed quickly by another. “ **Steven, Connie, you should** ** _both_** **drink up. You need to rehydrate.** ”

**_A COUPLE OF HOURS LATER..._ **

“ **...And that little bit should go there...** ” Pearl pointed at a gap, and Connie carefully slotted the piece in with a small tap. “ **...Which means that goes there.** ”   
Connie walked around the almost completed magical puzzle and tapped the piece into place. “ **That's all of them, ma’am.** ” she said, brushing off her hands.   
Pearl nodded. “ **Okay, looks like we’ve got most of it. Those little gaps must have been completely destroyed.** ”   
Steven sighed. “ **My turn?** ”   
Pearl nodded. “ **Yes. We know you can do this, Steven. If I’m wrong, I will... stop nagging Amethyst about her room.** ”   
Amethyst’s eyes widened. “ **Steven, don’t do it man, I’m begging** **ya** **...** ” she pleaded with him, humour in her eyes.   
Steven giggled as Pearl rolled her eyes. “ **Don’t listen to her, Steven. Just do your best.** ”   
Steven nodded as Garnet held him upside-down above the warp pad by his ankles. Taking a breath, he filled his mouth with a little bit of water and worked up a spit. Finally, he looked down and spat it out in the middle of the warp pad.   
Pearl grimaced slightly at the display as the frothy solution spread across the pad.   
As Garnet flipped Steven back up, he sighed. “ **Sorry guys...** ”

Just then, the warp pad started to sparkle and glow. As they watched in amazement, the lines and cracks disappeared from the centre out. The small gaps belonging to pieces that they couldn’t find filled in until finally, the complete warp pad sat in front of them, gleaming slightly, without a trace of damage.   
Steven stared for a moment. “ ** _WOO-HOO!_** ” he cheered, throwing his arms into the air. “ ** _I DID IT!_** ” he shouted, voice squeaking slightly as he started to dance in Garnet’s arms.   
Pearl clapped her hands with excitement. “ **I knew you could!** ”   
Amethyst whooped loudly. “ **You da man!** ”   
Connie gave him a high five, made awkward from his raised position in Garnet’s arms. “ **That’s awesome, Steven!** ”   
Garnet nuzzled her face into his hair. “ **Well done. We’re proud of you.** ”

As the group stepped onto the warp pad, Steven was still grinning with pride.   
Pearl carefully avoided standing in the middle of the pad. “ **Okay, everyone ready?** ” At their confirmation, Pearl sighed. “ **Let’s go home.** ”

After a moment, Pearl frowned. “ **I’m... not getting anything. Garnet?** ”    
Garnet shook her head. “ **I can’t connect.** ”    
“ **Amethyst, try the Kindergarten.** ”   
After a moment, the purple Gem shook her head as well, her long hair flying around. “ **Nadda** **.** ”   
Steven’s face fell. “ **Oh.** ”   
Pearl glanced at him. “ **Okay, everyone off. I’m going to try something.** ”    
Once they had all stepped off, Connie looked at her. “ **What are you** **gonna** **do?** ”   
Pearl sighed. “ **Well, it’s not recommended... Technically speaking, a pearl could get shattered on** **Homeworld** **for even** ** _attempting_** **this, but... I’m going to try to connect to the system personally.** ”

As they watched, Pearl knelt by the side of the warp and gently placed her hands on the side. Connie gasped as Pearl’s hands slid forwards, her fingers slipping into the side of the warp pad as her eyes lit up with computer code and she started to hum softly. “ **Whoa... Is she okay?** ” Connie asked, concerned.   
Garnet nodded. “ **Yes. Some Gems are designed to interface with technology, like Peridot. But, because most of our technology has stuff in common, there’s some overlap. Pearls are required to be able to fly a small transport ship to basically drive their... owners to various places. So, she can interface with almost any Gem tech, even if** **Homeworld** **didn’t really intend for that to be possible.** ” she shrugged. “ **...** ** _I_** **didn’t even know she could do this.** ”

After a few minutes, Pearl disconnected with a shudder. “ **This... isn’t good.** ” Sitting on the edge of the warp pad, she ran her hands over her face, rubbing her eyelids gently. “ **Well, the good news is this: Steven, you did fix it.** **This warp pad is working perfectly.** ”   
Steven’s eyes lit up. “ **I did?** ”   
Pearl nodded. “ **Yes. The reason we can’t warp anywhere is because...** ” she sighed. “ **I can’t believe this either, but... the entire warp system is down.** ”   
“ **What?!** ” Amethyst groaned. “ **Oh, man...** ”   
Pearl nodded. “ **I agree with the sentiment. We can’t warp anywhere else because this is now the** ** _only_** **warp pad on the planet. And that’s entirely thanks to Steven. It's a fair assumption that the other warp pads also exploded. We are going to have to find another way home.** ”

Pearl glanced up and noticed the colour of the sky. “ **It’s getting late. We should make camp for tonight, and try to figure out this problem after we’ve all had a rest.** ”   
Garnet frowned. “ **You did regenerate quickly...** ”   
Pearl nodded and sighed. “ **I could use a short break, yes...** ” she admitted with a blush.   
Garnet nodded, putting Steven down. “ **Pearl, you stay here. We’ll gather some firewood.** ”   
Pearl reached up, summoning a small package. “ **This should be a tent, for the kids.** ”   
Steven and Connie glanced at each other and nodded in agreement. “ **Then we’ll set it up then.** ”

As Garnet created a small electric charge, the dry leaves beneath the sticks of wood burst into flame. Carefully, she breathed on it, and soon they had a small but warm fire.   
Steven dropped the small hammer and stood back. “ **All done.** ”   
Connie nodded. “ **Yep. That’s a tent, alright.** ”   
Just then, Connie’s stomach gave a loud growl, followed closely by Steven’s. Blushing, they started giggling.    
“ **I’d almost forgotten how hungry I was...** ” Connie blushed.   
Steven sighed. “ **I’m starved. Pearl, do you have anything in your gem?** ”   
Pearl thought for a moment. “ **Let’s see... I have some bottled water, a few basic foodstuffs for emergencies... As for protein, hmm...** ” She reached up and summoned a small package. “ **I do have this dried meat that I was given back in 1287. BC, that is.** ” Glancing up, she noticed their faces. “ **It’s okay. Things do not rot or deteriorate in my gem. I have flowers given to me by children thousands of years ago that are still as fresh as the day they were picked.** ” Demonstrating, she pulled a small wildflower from her gem, and they took note of its bright vivid colours and strong scent before she stored it away. “ **That particular species is now extinct. I can basically store things indefinitely.** ”

As Pearl unwrapped the package, the two young teens looked at the meat with trepidation. “ **I** **dunno** **...** ”   
Amethyst reached over and plucked a piece out. Putting in her mouth, she chewed it slowly. “ **Hmm... Chewy... a bit tough... but tastes pretty good.** **Kinda** **like biltong. Doesn’t taste bad or anything.** ” she finally swallowed. “ **Would probably soften up a lot if we boiled it.** ”   
Pearl nodded and pulled a cooking pot from her gem. Reaching up again, she pulled two small bags out as well as a few bottles of water. “ **I also have some carrots and some small potatoes, we can make a stew from it.** ”   
Amethyst nodded and started pouring water into the pot. “ **Cool. Let’s let this meat boil for a bit first though. Don’t** **wanna** **overcook the veg.** ”

After almost two hours, the smell of the stew wafting through the air had the two young teens watching the bubbling pot constantly, almost drooling with hunger. Amethyst checked it, and gave a sigh. “ **Yeah, it’s done.** ”   
Pearl nodded and summoned three bowls and a ladle.   
As she handed the bowls out, Amethyst pushed it back. “ **Nah.** **They need to eat** **way** **more than I do.** ”   
Pearl looked at her and smiled. “ **Oh. Are you sure?** ”   
Amethyst nodded. “ **Yeah. I’m good.** ”   
Pearl stored the bowl and started serving. “ **Well, whatever they don’t eat, you should have. You basically cooked it, after all.** ” she added as she placed a spoon into each bowl before delivering them into two pairs of hungry hands.   
As Amethyst opened her mouth, the sound of slurping interrupted her.   
“ **This is** **soo** **good!** ” Steven moaned, swallowing mere seconds before shoving another spoonful in.   
Connie was panting and sucking on a water bottle. “ **Hot, but amazing.** ”   
Amethyst grinned. “ **Huh. Just like me.** ” she laughed.   
“ **Amethyst!** ” Pearl shook her head with amusement as Garnet chuckled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You'll get another chapter within 24 hours.


	8. Memories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> insert funny summary here

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, this should be the last check-in with Beach City for a fair while.

**_THE NEXT MORNING:_ ** 

Pearl sighed and put her phone away. “ **Nothing yet...** ” she muttered as she started to pull various things from her gem.   
As Pearl start cracking eggs into a frying pan that Garnet held over the fire, Connie yawned. “ **I wonder why all of the warp pads blew up?** ”   
Pearl glanced at her. “ **I... have my suspicions.** ”   
“ **Meaning?** ” Amethyst prompted as she ate the eggshells.   
Pearl flipped the eggs. “ **It could be the precursor of... an invasion. By** **Homeworld** **.** ”   
Steven and Connie looked at each other. “ **Really?** ”   
Pearl nodded. “ **Yes. It’s standard operating procedure when d** **eal** **ing with** **an** **enemy force.** ” she paused to place the cooked eggs on a plate and cracked some more, tossing the shells to Amethyst. “ **Destroy the enemy’s communication systems and limit their ability move freely. Destroying the warp system has that exact effect. We can’t move around easily, and the EMP’s seemed to have damaged the phone systems, and who even knows what else. We're at a disadvantage, which is exactly where you’d want your enemy: weakened, unable to escape or summon help.** ” 

As the kids ate, Garnet sighed heavily. “ **We need to get back to Beach City as quickly as possible.** ”   
Pearl nodded. “ **Agreed. If** **Homeworld** **is going to attack anywhere first, it will be the temple.** ”   
“ **So, any ideas on how we’re getting back?** ” Amethyst sighed.   
Pearl summoned a large folded sheet of paper. “ **I have a map of this general area. It's only a few decades old, so it should mostly still be accurate.** ” she waved a hand dismissively. “ **Let’s see...** ” they waited as she examined it, tracing her finger along the page. “ **Okay, there should be a town, possibly a city by now, to our... west. We should be able to reach it by tomorrow without too much of a struggle.** ”   
Steven sighed. “ **My poor toesies are** **gonna** **be so sore...** ”   
Pearl glanced at his dirty mud-covered feet. “ **Yes. Even if Garnet carries you most of the way, your lack of footwear is a problem... One moment...** ” As they watched, Pearl frowned slightly, and then smiled. Reaching up, she summoned a small pair of boots from her gem. “ **I’ve had these stored for so long, I’m honestly not even sure where I got them... or when for that matter.** **But,** **they should fit you.** ” She summoned a pair of pink socks and a small box of wet wipes before she leaned forwards and started wiping the dried mud off his feet as he giggled.   
Steven gulped down the last of his meal before trying the boots on. To his relief, they fit well with the socks, and he walked around the warp pad a couple of times to be sure. “ **Yep, they fit good. Thanks Pearl.** ” 

Pearl nodded. “ **You’re welcome, Steven. Now, if you’re both done eating, we should get moving. We might need to walk through the night...** ” she started to fold the map back up. “ **After that, we’ll see about getting a flight back to Delmarva. Or if all else fails, stowing away on a cargo ship. Whichever is most convenient.** ”   
As Connie stood, she picked up the large pink sword nearby.   
Pearl sighed. “ **Actually, I should probably store that. We have a long way to go, and if we have to run for any reason, it could slow you down, or get caught on something.** ”   
Connie nodded. “ **Yes, ma’am.** ” she said, holding the elaborate sword out. 

 

 **_BEACH CITY:_ ** 

 

“ **Okay, I managed to get some time off work.** ” Priyanka sighed. “ **Not that it was easy. Apparently ‘** ** _your only child is missing_** **’ isn’t quite a good enough reason to have time off. Damned administration...** ” she muttered under her breath.   
Greg chuckled softly. “ **Yeah, I was never all that good at dealing with a boss. Or authority figures. That's why I barely made it through high school: the teachers thought I was a good-for-nothing punk.** ” he shrugged. “ **And now I’m a millionaire. Funny how that works out**.”   
Peridot crossed her arms. “ **If you are all** ** _quite_** **finished, we should get started on moving this** **clodding** **stuff out of the way. If Steven is trapped in there, with the others of course, then I'd prefer to rescue him sooner rather than later.** ”   
Greg nodded. “ **So, what’s the plan here?** ”   
Peridot puffed up. “ **I’ll levitate myself thusly...** ” she raised herself up with her trashcan-lid holding onto one end of the rope. “ **And tie this... rope, as you call it... to a piece of wreckage. Then you three pull on the other end until it comes free. We keep doing that until the** **portal** **is cleared.** ”   
Doug nodded. “ **Sounds fair. Just make sure to tell us how much effort we should use for each bit. We don’t want to bring anything down on top of us because we pulled it more than needed.** ”   
Peridot huffed and looked at him. “ **Yes, that would be... an undesirable outcome.** ” She lifted herself up and disappeared into the hole in the side of Steven’s house. 

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As they took a short break for lunch, to Peridot’s annoyance, Greg invited them both back to the car wash for cold drinks. As he sat on the edge of the van’s cargo area, he sighed as he ran the can across the back of his neck before he opened it and took a gulp. “ **It bugs me that I can’t work as long as Peridot. She has stamina, sure... but she doesn’t have the strength of the other Gems, apparently, so she can’t lift things by herself. But I'm just an old guy... Steven can - and actually has - lifted me over his head.** ”   
Priyanka raised an eyebrow. “ **Really?** ”   
Greg smiled. “ **Yeah. He's getting stronger every day. I think even the Gems are surprised.** ”   
Priyanka sipped her water. “ **I suppose that why you allow him to go on these dangerous... missions?** ”   
Greg shrugged. “ **Nah. It’s not like I really have a choice. He's half Gem. He needs to know what that means, even if it’s scary for both of us. Besides, the Gems will protect him. Garnet can lift my van over her head with one hand. Amethyst can turn into pretty much anything, so she can scare off any threats. As for Pearl, well, she’s over-protective and strong enough that she once threw an entire jungle gym at Steven's babysitter...** ”   
“ **WHAT?!** ” Doug and Priyanka both exclaimed. 

Greg chuckled. “ **Yeah, that took some explaining. Turns out, they thought Steven had been kidnapped by this girl. I had to arrange things pretty quickly, small emergency, so I didn’t get the chance to tell them that Steven would be looked after for the day. So, when they found him in the park with a stranger, well...** ” he shrugged and took another gulp of water. “ **To be fair to them, they were only concerned for his safety. But let’s just say that I could never find a babysitter again. Those girls talk to each other, you know... even if you do pay extra for the trouble.** ” he shook his head.    
“ **But,** **the Gems were more than happy to watch him when needed. They may not really understand what his human needs are, or how to deal with that stuff, but they really do love him.** ” He smiled sadly. “ **When Steven was still pretty young, he honestly thought that Pearl was his mother. He could tell how much she loved him, and figured that a woman who loves you that much has to be mum. Even though she was clearly uncomfortable with the idea, and tried to get him to call her Pearl, she also knew that he was just... too young, to understand where his mother really was. So, Pearl let him call her whatever he wanted. Once she figured that he was old enough to understand, she gently told him that she wasn’t his mother, but she’ll still be there for him when he needed her. It took another year or so before he switched to calling her Pearl all the time.** ” He chuckled. “ **To our mutual relief. Being called mum and dad was uncomfortable for the both of us...** ” 

Doug noticed a few of Steven’s things in the van. Greg followed his eyes. “ **Y** **eah, Peridot helped me pull them out of the house yesterday. Well, she pulled out what she could and threw them out to me. So, Steven will still have some of his stuff. I can always buy him the rest after we rebuild.** ”   
Doug nodded. “ **So, I take it from the fact that she flies around on a trash can lid that the Gems really are...** ”   
“ **Aliens?** ” Greg smiled. “ **Yep. They’re a bunch of gay space rocks who are thousands of years old.** ” he shrugged and finished the water.   
“ **Thousands...** ” Priyanka gasped. “ **That’s... holy shit...** ”   
Greg nodded. “ **Tell me about it. I didn’t quite believe it myself at first. But Rose had Pearl show me some of her memories. She can make holograms with her gem...** ” he tapped the centre of his forehead. “ **... so, I got to see what Roman soldiers actually looked like. Some humans from a few thousand years ago. What the Earth looks like from the moon... that one was my favourite...** ” he sighed wistfully. 

“ **Anyway...** ” he continued. “ **A few thousand years ago, Pearl and Rose decided that they didn’t like what** **Homeworld** **was doing to the Earth. They decided to throw away everything that they had ever known to fight for Earth, and for humans like us.** ” he sighed sadly. “ **The war lasted about a thousand years. They lost a lot of good friends. Pearl... I don’t think she ever fully recovered. Even today, she struggles. She tries to hide it, especially from Steven,** **cause** **she doesn’t want him to worry about her, but... yeah... she’s pretty traumatised.** ” he ran his hand down his face. “ **I’m fairly sure that she has PTSD.** ”   
Priyanka glanced at Doug. “ **Perhaps she should see a professional, get some psychiatric help?** ”   
Greg shrugged. “ **Sure. If you know anyone who knows how to deal with an ancient space rock with a thousand years of war memories, plus whatever horrible things she’s witnessed since then, go ahead and give me their number. But honestly Priyanka, I doubt there’s anyone on this planet who’s qualified to help her.** ” 

“ **Well, what about this...** **Homeworld** **?** ” Doug asked, finishing his own water. “ **Won’t they have someone she could talk to?** ”   
Greg shrugged. “ **Not according to Rose. She didn't tell me much about Pearl’s past, only that she never really recovered from the war, but... I asked her about getting Pearl help as well. And apparently, Gems don’t have any real health system. They don’t actually** ** _need_** **doctors, because they don’t get sick. If they’re injured, they just... poof. Their bodies disappear and they go back to just being rocks. Then they regenerate, and make a new body. Handy trick, if you ask me.** ” he grinned.   
Priyanka looked disbelieving. “ **You mean to tell me that they are somehow... immune to injury and disease?** ”   
Greg half-shrugged. “ **Yeah, pretty much. They don’t have organs, usually. I mean, Amethyst** **give** **s herself a stomach so she can eat. Rose gave herself a womb, so she could have Steven. Pearl... doesn’t like organs. She thinks they’re gross. But she still shapeshifts a heart to comfort Steven when he hugs her.** ”  

As Priyanka and Doug stared, Greg chuckled. “ **Oh. Uh, when he was a baby, he didn’t really like being held by any of them. They found it upsetting, because they thought that he hated them. But Pearl read through the baby book I had found, and learned that babies like to hear heartbeats. She gave herself one, just to see what would happen, and he didn’t cry that time. He settled down and fell asleep in her arms. So, they all started doing that, but only when holding him. The rest of the time, they don’t bother.** ” he shook his head. “ **They are** ** _literally_** **heartless, but they’re full of love. For Steven, and each other.** ” 

“ **So, the health care system?** ” Doug prompted.   
Greg rubbed the back of his neck. “ **Uh, right. According to what Rose told me, on their** **Homeworld** **, any Gem that can’t do their job for any reason is considered defective. They're... they shatter them. Kill them. And replace them with someone else who looks just the same.** **Homeworld** **considers most Gems to be easily replaceable.** ”   
“ **That’s terrible...** ” Priyanka shook her head.   
Greg nodded sadly. “ **Yeah, I know. So, even if Pearl could go home without being executed as a traitor, she won’t find anyone who could help her. They don’t help anyone who needs it. You either do your job, or you get replaced with another you.** ” 

As they walked back towards the house, Doug cleared his throat. “ **What do you mean by ‘executed’?** ”   
Greg tilted his head. “ **Pearl rebelled against her home planet, against the Diamond Authority, which is basically a dictatorship. If they don’t let anybody live because they’re too traumatised to do their job, what makes you think they’d let a traitor live? As far as** **Homeworld** **is concerned, Rose, Pearl and Garnet are war criminals. Apparently, Amethyst was too late to be involved...** ” he sighed. “ **Problem is...** **Homeworld** **thinks that Steven is his mother. They think he’s Rose, and want to make him pay for her crimes against them. She never meant for him to have to deal with her aftermath, she had no way of knowing** **Homeworld** **would return in his lifetime. They stayed away for five thousand years...** ” 

Peridot heard them and sighed. “ **I... regret... my previous allegiance to** **Homeworld** **...** ” she said sadly. “ **If it wasn’t for Steven... I would never had known of my powers. I wouldn’t have discovered the beauty of Earth for myself.** ” she sighed and then hovered back up to the house.   
Greg sighed. “ **Yeah, she technically invaded a year or so ago. But Steven won her over. She's pretty much the newest Crystal Gem now. They trust her.** ”   
Up in the house, Peridot lifted a small piece of rubble and gasped. Reaching over the side of the lid, she tenderly picked up the small green sock with plastic eyes glued to it. She held it to her chest as she softly cried. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Peridot...
> 
> See ya next weekend!


	9. A Good Old Fashioned Lynching

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Short chapter is short.

**_THE NEXT DAY:_ ** 

The group stood on the nearby hill, looking down on the city below.   
“ **Well, that’s not good...** ” Pearl muttered, taking in the sight of the small crater on the side of the street. Water from a burst water main poured out, and half of an apartment building was collapsed, blocking the road. Police officers and emergency workers swarmed like ants, clearing rubble, directing traffic and loading people in waiting ambulances.   
Steven wiped his eyes. “ **I hope no-one's hurt too bad...** ” he whispered.   
Garnet folded her arms. “ **We’ll have to tread carefully, and avoid the site of the warp pad.** ”   
Pearl nodded. “ **Yes. It might be best if we don’t repair that one... Minimise the human toll if the warp system is attacked again...** ” 

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As the group wandered through the suburban streets, they were surprised by the lack of noise. Traffic lights were dark, and only a handful of cars were slowly going along the road, pausing at intersections as the drivers checked for cross-traffic.   
“ **I suppose it’s for the best. Less drivers means less chance of a serious accident.** ” Pearl mused.   
They turned down a street lined with houses and short fences. 

In a nearby house, a group of people were sitting on the porch. A battery-powered radio sitting on the table between them was playing music, and for a moment, the group paused, appreciating the sound as the tune died away.   
“ ** _\--- and now for the latest updates on the ongoing world-wide crisis. The reports coming in after the recent series of explosions are scattered due to the large-scale power outages, but here’s what this station has received so far._** ”   
Pearl glanced at Garnet, and the two moved closer to the fence to hear, the others following closely.   
“ ** _The immediate death toll from the explosions has reached seventy-three._** ”   
Pearl gasped, her hand over her mouth as Steven’s lip trembled.   
“ ** _The death toll from secondary effects, such as road accidents, hospital generator failures, as well as heatstroke and hypothermia where applicable, has risen to two hundred and seventy-eight. Known casualties has almost reached twenty-five hundred, with more expected in the coming days._** ” 

Steven burst into tears, as Amethyst placed a hand on his shoulder. Connie reached over and held his hand, too stunned to speak.   
“ ** _Early investigations have found that the epicentre of each explosion is the strange blue platforms scattered across the world in seemingly random locations. Th_** ** _ese_** ** _are known to be devices connected to the Gem people, although their function is unknown. Why the devices exploded is unknown, but a deliberate attack has not been ruled out._** ”   
As the message repeated in another language, the group gathered around the radio had now turned to glare at them, leaning to whisper to each other on occasion.   
Garnet picked up Steven and Connie. “ **We should leave...** ” she murmured lowly.   
One of the men went into the house and came back with a drawer of knives. As the others started grabbing them, he returned to the house and came back with a baseball bat.   
“ **We don’t want to fight you...** ” Pearl called out, her hands out in front of her placatingly.   
Almost as one, the humans started towards them, shouting obscenities and some throwing knives.   
The Gems turned and bolted, easily losing their pursuers. 

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As they came to a stop in the hills above the city, Steven clung onto Garnet, sobbing openly.   
Connie’s eyes were downcast, fear tingeing her expression as she occasionally glanced back towards the city.   
Pearl was visibly shaking. “ **Okay... we should p-probably avoid t-towns, cities and h-human settlements f-for the time being...** ” she stammered.   
Amethyst came up and wrapped her arms around the clearly distressed Gem. “ **Man, humans sometimes don’t trust us, yeah, but they’ve never done that before...** ”   
Garnet sighed. “ **Sadly, humans tend to blame an entire social group, instead of just the one causing the problems. They’ve decided that all Gems are attacking them, and nothing we say will convince them that we mean them no harm.** ”   
“ **They didn’t even care that we had children with us...** ” Pearl muttered. “ **They were throwing knives at** ** _children_** **!** ” she growled as she slid down, her back against the tree. “ **There’s no excuse for that...** ” she whispered, as Amethyst sat beside her and threw an arm over her shoulder. 

“ **So, now what?** ” Connie asked, her voice small.   
Pearl glanced up at her. “ **Well, from here, there are two other locations we can try for. Both have warp pads, so repairing them will provide us with a check point in case we need to back-track for any reason.** ” Creating a hologram, she zeroed in on their general location, and they could now see that they were in Scandinavia. “ **We can go across the mountains, to the Sky Spire...** ” she created a dotted line between their location and a small dot. “ **Maybe say hello to Steven’s goat...** ” she added with a tight smile.   
“ **Don’t forget the grandkids.** ” Amethyst added, shapeshifting briefly into a goat. “ **Maaahh** **!** ” she bleated before turning back with a grin.   
Steven laughed despite himself as Amethysts’ antics broke the tension. “ **I** ** _do_** **wonder how Steven Jr. is going...** ”   
Pearl nodded. “ **Or...** ” she created another dotted line to a different dot. “ **We can go to the south-west, to the Strawberry Battlefield.** ” she looked between the group. “ **Both have flaws and benefits. Having a checkpoint at the Sky Spire would provide a place of guaranteed shelter to regroup, even if it’s a little difficult to reach... Creating a checkpoint at the battlefield would have the added benefit of giving us a safe place we can get some emergency food, even if it is only strawberries...** ”   
“ **I vote strawberries.** ” Connie raised her hand.   
Steven added to her. “ **Yeah, strawberries.** ”   
“ **Strawberries.** ” Amethyst pumped a fist.   
Garnet nodded. “ **It would be quicker and easier than going over the mountains.** ” she stated.   
Pearl nodded. “ **Then we’re all in agreement. We try for the strawberry battlefield.** ” she cancelled the hologram and sighed. “ **Besides, I don’t have much in the way of food supplies for you two. Having a guaranteed food source would take some of the pressure off of my limited supplies.** ”   
Garnet nodded. “ **We should leave now.** ” her head turned back towards the city, hinting at oncoming trouble.   
Amethyst and Pearl looked at each other and stood, Garnet quickly following Pearl with the kids still in her arms as they began to skirt around the edge of the city. 

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 **_BEACH CITY:_ ** 

Doug look up in amazement as the blue woman with wings made from water landed on the beach on front of them. “ **Whoa...** ”   
“ **I’ll say...** ” Priyanka muttered. “ **We should probably get used to seeing stuff like this...** ”   
“ **Lapis, you’re back!** ” Peridot fell off the trashcan lid and scurried over to her, pausing in front as she noticed Lapis’ face.   
Greg walked over cautiously. “ **Any sign of them?** ”   
Lapis Lazuli shook her head. “ **No... I’ve checked every floating Gem structure I could find. I just... I found destroyed warp pads, damaged ruins... One had even been completely destroyed, and was lying on the ground in pieces...** **But,** **I didn’t find any sign of Steven...** ”   
Peridot carefully placed a hand on Lapis’ shoulder. “ **He could simply be stuck in the temple. See, we’ve almost finished clearing the** **portal** **.** ”    
“ **We could use some extra strength...** ” Greg added.   
Peridot nodded enthusiastically. “ **Yes. With just three weak** ** _humans_** **to help me, progress has been slow.** ” she seemed oblivious to the insulted looks on said humans faces. “ **With another Gem with** ** _actual_** **physical strength, we’ll have Steven out of there in no time!** ”   
Lapis sighed. “ **Okay... Where do I start?** ” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case you haven't noticed, this fic is slow burn.  
> There also won't be as many end-of-chapter cliffhangers, if any.
> 
> They're gonna start going places soon, I promise.


	10. Strawberry Tourism

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Making plans, and eating giant strawberries.

**_TWO DAYS LATER:_ **

After setting Steven on his feet, Garnet helped Connie down from her shoulder. The two immediately ran towards the nearby strawberries, each picking up one as large as their head.    
Connie briefly wiped hers with her bottom of her shirt. “ **Omph** **...** ” she sighed as she bit into it, the juices running down her chin. “ **Sho** **goot** **.** ”   
Steven nodded in agreement, his cheeks bulging with fruit. He seemed unaware that he already had a large seed stuck to the side of his face with sticky juice, and Connie swallowed before she giggled at the sight.   
Pearl sighed. “ **Kids, we’ll be over there-** ” she pointed deeper into the field. “ **\- collecting the pieces of the warp pad. We’ll call you when it’s ready to be repaired.** ”   
The two each gave a thumbs up, their mouths full once again.

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As Pearl delicately slotted the last tiny shard into place, she stood and nodded. “ **Okay, are we absolutely sure that we can’t find any more pieces?** ”   
Amethyst shook her head. “ **Nah, Pierogi. I checked every damaged strawberry around here. Whatever's missing is vaporised, poof.** ” she imitated an explosion, and Pearl nodded.   
“ **Okay... Garnet, fetch the kids. They can bring their meals with them...** ”

As the warp pad flashed and shimmered, Pearl gave a sigh of relief as it became completely intact. “ **Okay, good job Steven. I’ll just see if I can** **go** **back to the other warp, make sure that they’re connecting.** ”   
She briefly stepped onto the pad, and with a wall of glowing blue light, she disappeared. A few seconds later, she returned, a smile on her face. “ **Who is the best Steven in the world?** ”   
“ **I am!** ” Steven grinned.   
Pearl winked playfully. “ **Well, I don’t see any other Stevens around here.** ” Looking around, she nodded, satisfied. “ **Okay, at least we’ll be able to return here for some reasonably healthy food. Even if it is more than a little messy...** ” she noted their juice-stained faces and clothing as the kids blushed.

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**_A FEW HOURS LATER..._ **

As Pearl spread a blanket over the two young teens sleeping on top of the warp pad, she sighed softly before she turned and walked a short distance away, settling herself between Garnet and Amethyst.   
“ **Well, those clothes are likely ruined.** ” she muttered. “ **By the time I’ll have a chance to clean them properly, the stains will be set...** ” as she leaned against Amethyst, she sighed heavily. “ **Especially as finding a laundromat is out of the question**.”   
Amethyst rested her head on Pearl’s shoulder. “ **Yeah... we can’t exactly beat humans up, just to get some clothes washed...** ”   
“ **Even** ** _I’m_** **not that crazy...** ” Pearl mumbled.   
Garnet snickered. “ **Surprisingly enough.** ”   
Pearl swatted her arm. “ **Oh, very funny. You blockheaded dork...** ” she added with a grin.   
Amethyst stifled a laugh, her hand over her mouth as she glanced back at the sleeping kids. “ **Shhh** **! You’ll wake ‘** **em** **...** ”

After they settled down a bit, Pearl quietly summoned her map of the area. “ **Well, we’ll need to figure out a way to reach Delmarva, without spending unnecessary time near human settlements...** ”   
They watched as she ran her finger across the map, muttering softly under her breath in a language neither recognised.   
“ **Hmm... If we can make it to this port-** ” she tapped a spot on the map for them. “ **-we might be able to sneak onto a ship. We'll have to lay low, but with any luck, we can be home within another week.** ”   
Garnet nodded. “ **Hopefully, before** **Homeworld** **attacks.** ”   
Pearl sighed. “ **Yes. With any luck, we’ll get a chance to rest up first whilst Greg convinces the mayor to evacuate Beach City.** ”

Amethyst glanced between them. “ **You guys really reckon they’re coming? For reals?** ”   
Pearl gave Garnet a quick look and placed her hand on top of Amethyst’s. “ **Sadly, yes. This... this might be it...** ”   
“ **The past five thousand years were just... a break, in hostilities.** **Homeworld** **likely didn’t give up on making the Earth a colony, or destroying it some other way. We must stop them from taking over. And from waking the Cluster.** ” Garnet said, removing her glasses to reveal eyes filled with trepidation.   
Amethyst looked down. “ **Man... This is... How are we** **gonna** **survive this? I mean...** ” she glanced back at the sleeping children. “ **Our ‘army’ is really just you guys and Lapis. Those two are just kids, Peridot’s not** **gonna** **last long by flicking soda cans at them, and let’s be real here: I’m not** **gonna** **be able to do much with a whip, guys...** ” she ran her fingers through her bangs with a groan.   
Garnet and Pearl gave another look. Pearl sighed and nodded. “ **Amethyst... That’s why we’re giving you the most important job. You have to make sure Steven and Connie evacuate with their parents. Make sure t** **hat t** **hey** ** _stay_** **there.** ”

Amethyst stared at her. “ **You mean, run away, and leave you guys to die?** ”   
Pearl shook her head. “ **No. We’ll likely be taken prisoner. I have information that they’d want, especially about the death of... her...** ” she grimaced slightly. “ **Which they’ll probably try and torture out of me...** **A waste of time, really.** ”   
“ **It didn’t work last time.** ” Garnet muttered.   
Pearl chuckled as Amethyst’s eyes widened. “ **Yeah... I’m too crazy to torture, apparently.** ” she sighed. “ **Anyhow, Garnet... is probably in more serious trouble. Half of her** ** _was_** **sentenced to death more than fifty-seven hundred years ago...** ”   
Garnet shrugged. “ **I’ve had a good run.** ”   
“ **You need to make sure Steven doesn’t come back to help us this time. The Diamonds already think that he’s... Rose. This time, they may very well decide to skip the trial, and go straight to the execution... You need to do everything in your power to stop him from coming back to the temple. Tie him up with a whip or two, and throw him into the back of Greg’s van. Stars, knock him out a little, if you have to. Just... keep him safe. Please.** ” she wrapped Amethyst into a hug.   
Amethyst looked into Garnet’s eyes. “ **Geez... Okay. I’ll... I’ll get him away. Connie too. What about Peridot?** ”   
Garnet nodded. “ **Her too. Tell her** **that** **you need her help keeping Steven from coming back for us. Just don’t let her say anything about what may happen to us.** ” she indicated Pearl. “ **Steven... and Connie too. They really don’t need to know what** **Homeworld** **might do to us.** ”

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**_THE NEXT DAY..._ **

Pearl pulled the cap lower over her forehead as they crept around the side of the warehouse. Glancing quickly around the corner, she sighed. “ **Okay, there’s a ticket’s and booking office there. I suppose that’s where they’d keep the schedule... Now, how are we going to get a copy?** ”   
Connie rolled her eyes. “ **I’ve got this.** ” she said, walking out past them quickly and walking away before they could grab her.   
As they watched, Connie waited in line at the booth. When it was her turn, she spoke to the person inside and was handed a folded piece of paper. With a nod, she turned and came back, smiling.   
“ **One printed schedule.** ” she said, handing it over to Pearl.   
Pearl looked at it. “ **Okay... How did...** ”   
Connie shrugged. “ **I said my parents were trying to find a place to park the car, and that they’d sent me ahead to grab a copy of the schedule.** ”   
“ **Oh...** ” Pearl blushed. “ **That’s... far simpler than my plan, admittedly.** ”   
Connie shrugged. “ **My mad lying skills are finally paying off.** ”

“ **Well, let’s see what boats are available...** ” Pearl opened the schedule.   
Connie tapped the top corner. “ **By the way, the lady at the booth said that all boats to America have been... well, cancelled.** ”   
“ **What?** ” Pearl groaned. “ **Great, now what?** ”   
Connie nodded. “ **Yeah. It's because of the explosions and power outages. Goods aren’t being shipped, because they can’t be made or transported as normal because there’s no power. Passenger ships, like cruise liners, are docked until further notice, because they’re not sure if this is a terrorist thing, and no-one wants to be sued. The only things running today are-** ” she slipped the pamphlet out of Pearl’s hands and scanned down with her finger until she pointed at a spot. “ **-this tourist line to** **Blueland** **. T** **hey're making one last return** **trip today, then they’ll stop too.** **T** **hat’s** **probably the closest we’re** **gonna** **get to America from here... but maybe we can get another boat from there?** ”   
Pearl took the schedule back and examined the section Connie had indicated. “ **Hmm... Well, if that’s our only option...** ” she smiled at the girl. “ **Good job, Connie.** ”   
Steven gave her a high five as Amethyst playfully gave her shoulder a small thump. “ **Way to go, Con-Con.** ”   
Glancing up at Garnet, she was rewarded with a smile and a thumbs up.

Pearl glanced around the area before she summoned her phone. After a moment, she nodded. “ **Okay, there’s a boat leaving in about thirty minutes.** ” she said, storing her phone again. “ **Also, I still have no signal, and the messages haven’t been sent yet.** ” she folded the schedule up. “ **Now, disguises.** ” Concentrating, she phased a different set of clothes, giving herself a pair of tight light blue jeans and a yellow blouse. Reaching up, she removed the hat, storing it before she pulled a small square of fabric from her gem, which she tied around her head to cover her gem. “ **So, how do I look?** ”   
“ **I wish I could do that...** ” Connie sighed. “ **It’d make getting ready in the morning so much easier.** ”   
Steven nodded. “ **I have** ** _really_** **gotta** **learn how to do that... Wait,** ** _can_** **I even do that?!** ”   
He was given a series of shrugs.    
“ **Sorry, I have** **absolutely** **no idea.** ”    
“ **I** **dunno** **.** ”    
“ **Shrug City, bro.** ”   
Steven sighed. “ **Oh, bother.** ”

Garnet phased her clothes into a tight red shirt with dark blue jeans and thick black boots. After a pause, she summoned a bubble from her gems, popping it and slipping the jacket with the words ‘Mom Squad’ on the back over her shoulders and grinned. “ **I look awesome.** ”   
Steven giggled. “ **Yep. You both do.** ”   
Connie glanced at Amethyst. “ **I don’t think Amethyst is** **gonna** **be able to blend in too well. Humans aren’t usually purple...** ”   
Amethyst crossed her arms and huffed. “ **That’s _their_ problem.**”   
Pearl sighed. “ **She’s right though... Amethyst, shapeshift into something small enough that you can hold it for a while. We can carry you onboard. Once we get away from everyone, you can turn back.** ”   
Amethyst shrugged. “ **A’ight** **.** ” she thought for a moment, and finally turned into a short-strapped purple handbag with black straps and with her gem over the clasp. “ **How about this?** ” the flap lifted up as she spoke.   
Pearl picked her up and slung her over a shoulder. “ **Very stylish, Amethyst.** ” she patted the bag fondly. “ **Oh, I almost forgot...** ” Reaching up, she shifted the makeshift headscarf and summoned a small wad of money before carefully arranging the fabric again. “ **Good thing Greg gave me this for emergencies... We’ll need it for tickets.** ” Looking around as if to give them one last inspection, she nodded. “ **So, shall we?** ”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> By the way, I'm using the map in the 'Steven Universe: Art and Origins' book for the locations. It's on page 170.   
> It shows the Sky Arena in the general Scandinavian area. There's a mountain range between it and the Sky Spire. The Strawberry Battlefield is to the southern end of the mountain range.  
> Blueland is basically their Greenland. *shrug*  
> I know that map was basically them spit-balling possible locations for everything. But until canon disproves anything, I'll go by that map.
> 
>  
> 
> Well, I have another physio appointment for my arm tomorrow.  
> Hopefully, I can get some decent sleep tonight...  
> It been too hot in my room to sleep properly lately.   
> It's been consistently around 36˚c/95˚f for the last few weeks...  
> I've been lucky to get more than an hour or two of actual sleep...
> 
> See ya next weekend.


	11. Blueland Blues

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Life, ugh...

**_THE NEXT DAY..._ ** 

“ **Welcome to beautiful** **Blueland** **.** ” the guide waved a hand towards the shore. “ **Awaiting on shore are guided tours of the glaciers, and a visit to an Arctic Wildlife Sanctuary, amongst other delights of this beautiful land.** ”   
“ **Finally,** ” Pearl muttered under her breath. “ **I’m not sure how much longer we can dodge talking to the other tourists..**.”   
As the family of three waved towards them, Pearl forced a smile and waved back. “ **I want to throw him overboard...** ” she hissed under her breath the second the family had turned away.   
“ **Pearl, play nice.** ” Garnet placed a hand on her shoulder.   
Pearl sighed. “ **I’ve** ** _been_** **playing** ** _nice_** **since we got on this** ** _hellcruise_** **...** ” she grumbled. “ **He’s** ** _still_** **on the boat, isn’t he? So, I’ve. Played. Nice.** ”   
Garnet rolled her eyes. “ **Yes, good job. Keep it up. We're almost on** **the dock** **.”** she patted Pearl’s shoulder fondly as the kids watched and giggled. 

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Pearl paused to buy a newspaper from a vendor at the docks. Skimming through it quickly, she groaned. “ **Great... The Air Traffic Control system is damaged... Nobody really knows if the GPS systems are okay, not to mention the internet, and worldwide emergencies services are overwhelmed with ground-based emergencies, and are unable to handle any possible air emergencies that might crop up. So, all flights are grounded until the entire system has been checked and verified.** ” she sighed and closed the paper. “ **I’m all for safety and double-checking, but this makes getting home rather more difficult...** ”   
Connie nodded. “ **Right. I’ll go get another schedule, see what our options are from here.** ”   
Pearl nodded. “ **Okay, thank you Connie.** ” As the girl walked towards the booking booth, Pearl smiled. “ **At least** **one human** **thing is working properly around here.** ” 

As they watched her walk back, they noted her solemn face as she read the schedule. “ **Okay... there’s still no ships going to America. And the only boats that are going anywhere from here, are going back to Europe, so that doesn’t help us...** ”   
Pearl read the schedule over her shoulder. “ **Hmm... That's a problem. I suppose we** ** _could_** **try to walk the rest of the way. Or at least until we can find a train heading our way...** ”   
As Connie folded the schedule back up and handed it to Pearl for safe keeping, she nodded. “ **Looks like it’s all we’ve got.** ”   
Garnet looked around. “ **It’s getting late. We should try to find a place to stay.** ” 

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“ **Hello, and welcome to the Arctic Blue Hotel.** ” the concierge at the desk smiled at them.   
Pearl sighed. “ **How much for a room?** ”   
The concierge checked a written list. “ **Let’s see, bear with me here please, our computers are still down...** ”   
“ **Of course.** ” Pearl nodded.   
After a moment, the concierge looked up. “ **We have two rooms with two single beds going for..**.”   
Pearl intercepted. “ **Um, we don’t need two rooms...** ”   
The concierge looked between them. “ **Oh. I assumed that you were two families...** ”   
Pearl glanced back at the others. “ **No. We’re all together... Ugh, whatever. Just as long as the kids have beds.** ”   
The concierge glanced between Pearl and Garnet, his eyes lingering on Pearl longer, as if trying to figure something out. “ **Okay, for the two rooms, that comes to...** ”   
“ **American money, please. We haven’t been able to change it. The power problem...** ” Pearl added.   
The concierge nodded. “ **Ah, I see... Let me just see...** ”   
After clicking away on a calculator, he nodded. “ **Okay, that will be $90 per room, per night.** ”   
Pearl removed a small wad of money from a pocket and counted out a few notes. “ **There, $180, exactly.** ” 

The concierge handed them two sets of keys. “ **Thankfully, we’re still using keys here. The hotel down the road had people trapped in the** **ir** **rooms when the power went out.** ”   
Pearl tilted her head. “ **Did they get out okay?** ”   
“ **Yes, the fire brigade had to use their longest ladder to reach the higher floors, but everyone got out. Luckily, we also had solar water heaters installed a mere three years ago.** ” he added, glancing at the dirt smeared across Steven’s face and the mud and juice stains on Connie’s clothes. “ **The stairs are over there. Your rooms are on the Third floor.** ” he pointed to their lefts.   
Pearl smiled. “ **Well, that’s a relief.** ” Turning, she handed a key to Garnet. “ **Come on, kids. We need to take the stairs.** ”   
As they walked towards the stairs, Connie glanced back to see the concierge staring at Pearl with a funny look. 

“ **What a strange man...** ” Pearl muttered she they started climbing. “ **He kept staring at me oddly.** ”   
Connie giggled. “ **I think he thought that you were a guy...** ”   
Pearl paused and looked at her. “ **Why would he think that?** ”   
Connie shrugged. “ **Because you said we were all together. He probably thinks that you two-** ” she pointed at Garnet and Pearl. “ **-are married, and we’re your kids.** ”   
Pearl glanced at Garnet with a blush. “ **Oh. Well,** ** _now_** **the looks make sense...** ” she rolled her eyes as she started climbing the stairs again.   
“ **You don’t seem... insulted, or anything...** ” Connie asked.   
Pearl shrugged. “ ** _Please_** **... I’ve been assumed to be male so many times in the past five thousand years, I don’t even care anymore. Besides, I’m a rock. I don’t even** ** _have_** **a gender. Humans can call me what they want, as long as it’s not ‘** ** _it_** **’ ‘** ** _that_** **’ or a ‘** ** _thing_** **’... I had enough of** ** _that_** **nonsense on** **Homeworld** **..**.” she added darkly. 

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As they reached their rooms, Pearl nodded happily as she saw that they were next to each other. Unlocking the door, she noted the door between the rooms, which she quickly went and opened to check. “ **Well, that’s convenient.** ” she mused.    
Steven ran and jumped onto the bed, stretching out. “ **Oh man, soft pillows!** ”   
“ **Tchtchtch** **...** ” Pearl clicked her tongue as she turned and closed the door to the hallway. “ **Steven, no shoes on the bed. Also, you’re filthy. It looks like the shower is over there, go get cleaned up. Connie, you too.** ” she added as she summoned two sets of Steven’s spare clothes.   
Connie grabbed the stack of folded clothes and ran to the room next door. “ **Oh, god... hot water, I’ve missed you!** ” she moaned as she closed the bathroom door.   
Steven grabbed his pile and ran into the second bathroom. “ **Imma** **use** ** _all_** **the shampoo!** ”   
“ **Please do.** ” Pearl sighed as she removed her purse. 

As Pearl sat on the edge of one bed, Amethyst glowed and turned back with a groan and spread out behind Pearl. “ **Soft beds... I** **wanna** **sleep for a year...** ” her voice muffled by the pillow.   
Pearl laid back, her feet still on the floor. “ **Hmm... that actually sound pretty tempting... This trip has been extremely stressful...** ”   
Garnet smiled at them. “ **You two can sleep as long as you want.** ** _When_** **we get home.** ”   
“ **Spoilsport...** ” Pearl muttered. “ **Amethyst, hurt her.** ”   
“ **Can’t move. Too tired.** ” Amethyst groaned into the pillow. “ **I could throw you at her, so you can hurt her...** ”   
Pearl shook her head, her eyes closed. “ **No, that’d take too much effort...** ” she sighed and shuffled back, so she was entirely on the bed next to Amethyst with her hands clasped on her chest. “ **Garnet, hurt yourself.** ”   
Garnet chuckled softly and gently tapped her wrist. “ **Ow.** ”   
“ **There. That will teach you.** ” Pearl muttered, one eye opening slightly as she smirked at her.  

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As Connie dried herself off, she groaned. “ **Oh no... Not now...** ”   
Garnet heard a small tapping sound, and with a glance at her old friends, she turned and went back into the next room.   
“ **Garnet? Pearl? Amethyst?** ” Connie whispered through the door.   
“ **Connie.** ” Garnet responded, keeping her voice low.   
Connie sighed. “ **Um... I don’t supposed Pearl has any... stuff... in her gem?** ”   
Garnet raised an eyebrow. “ **She has a lot of things. You’d have to ask her for specifics.** ”   
Connie leaned against the back of the door. “ **Err... girl stuff. For... um... the bleeding thing?** ”   
Garnet made a strange noise. “ **Uhhh** **... I’ll be right back.** ” she quickly walked towards the connecting door. 

“ **Pearl.** ” Garnet picked the thin Gem up suddenly.   
Pearl’s eyes shot open. “ **Garnet?! What’s going on?!** ”   
Garnet blushed wildly. “ **Uh, Connie... bathroom... girl stuff... bleeding... I** **dunno** **...** ”   
Pearl stared at her a moment before an expression of disgust crossed her face. “ **OH! Oh, that.** **Uhh** **...** ” she looked down. “ **Garnet? My feet would like to be on the floor now...** ”   
Garnet glanced down and set Pearl down. “ **Sorry. I panicked.** ”   
Pearl patted her shoulder. “ **I wish I had the luxury this time...** ” she muttered as she crossed to the other room. 

“ **Connie?** ”   
The girl went back to the door. “ ** _Please_** **tell me you have some things?** ”   
Pearl blushed and shook her head. “ **Sorry, no. Gems... we don’t do this, Connie. We have no reason to. We are not biological beings.** ”   
“ **Lucky...** ” Connie muttered.   
Pearl noticed a notepad on a table nearby and picked it up along with a pencil. “ **Just, tell me what you need, and I’ll see if I can find it.** ” 

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A short while later, Pearl returned from the grocery store and she tapped gently on the bathroom door. “ **Connie? I have a bag to pass through...** ”   
The door opened a little, and a hand came through.   
Pearl hooked the bag over her wrist, and it was quickly retracted. “ **We’ll be in the next room...** ” Pearl added.   
“ **Thanks...** ” 

Pearl laid back beside Amethyst with a groan. “ **Well, that was an experience I never want to go through again...** ”   
“ **I wouldn’t blame you.** ” Garnet sighed.   
Amethyst had flipped over at some point, and she glanced over at Pearl. “ **Man, I don’t even** ** _know_** **how humans do that every month... I know Vidalia hated it with a** ** _vengeance_** **. She swore by chocolate though.** ”   
Pearl nodded. “ **There’s a chemical that basically acts like a painkiller. I threw a block of it into the basket.** ”   
“ **Good call.** ” Garnet noted.   
Pearl sat up. “ **I suppose that we should stay here until she’s done. Just to make sure she has access to the... things, that she needs.** ” she added with a blush.   
“ **Fine by me.** ” Amethyst sighed. “ **I’m marrying this bed, anyway.** ”   
Garnet chuckled. “ **I think we all could do with a short break...** ” 

As the nearby bathroom door opened, the group glanced at each other. Steven walked out with a sigh. “ **I have never felt cleaner...** ” he yawned. “ **Or tireder.** ”   
“ **I’m... not certain if that’s really a word, Steven.** ” Pearl chided as she stood to collect his dirty clothes from the bathroom floor.   
Steven jumped onto the other bed. “ **It is when you’re this tired.** ” he added, yawning as he climbed under the covers.   
As the other door was heard to open and close, Pearl glanced at Garnet. “ **I guess you’re sharing with Connie tonight.** ”   
Garnet nodded. “ **Okay. Sleep well.** ” she added as she returned to the other room.   
“ **Good night guys! Good night Connie!** ” Steven called.   
“ **Good night, Steven.** ” Connie called, a little softer. “ **Night everyone.** ” Poking her head through the door, she glanced at Pearl with a blush. “ **Thanks, Pearl.** ”   
“ **Don't mention it.** ** _Ever_** **.** ” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, some people don't like too much biological stuff in their fanfics. But this is mostly to show that it's been a fair while.  
> And periods don't care if you're stranded far from home after an alien attack.  
> She's just lucky I put them in a hotel first.


	12. Relationships

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everybody needs somebody to love...

**_THE NEXT MORNING..._ ** 

“ **So, we’re staying here?** ”   
Pearl nodded. “ **Yes. For a few days. We could all use a short break. Today, I’ll do a little shopping to get more supplies for the rest of our journey. Then we can rest up.** ”   
Connie sighed. “ **That’s a relief. My** ** _blisters_** **have blisters.** ”   
Steven nodded. “ **Plus, they have heaps of good food here.** ” he pointed towards the breakfast buffet table on the other wall of the dining room.   
“ **Steven, eat what you already have, first.** ” Pearl sighed. Quietly, she glanced around and swiftly emptied her plate of food into her purse.   
“ **Thanks, P.** ” Amethyst whispered back to her after swallowing.    
Pearl glanced down at her. “ **Just don’t belch. I’d have a hard time explaining that, and I may have to blame it on Steven.** ” she looked at him apologetically.   
“ **That’s fair.** ” he nodded before biting into a burger. 

As the table was cleared, Pearl turned to the boy who was sighing happily. " **Steven, would you like to come shopping with me?** ”   
“ **Yeah!** ” he grinned. “ **Connie? You coming?** ” he turned to her.   
Connie shook her head. “ **No, I’d rather rest up. Blisters...** ” she blushed.   
Steven nodded. “ **Okay. I’ll get you some** **bandaids** **.** ” 

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“ **Wow... there’s not much here...** ” Steven looked around the nearly empty store.   
Pearl nodded, and pointed towards a nearby sign as she grabbed a small basket.   
“ **Due to the recent crisis, our stock is running low. Please bear with us during this trying time.** ” Steven read aloud. “ **Oh.** ”   
Pearl grabbed another basket and handed it to him. “ **Come on. We'll see what we can find.** ”   
Steven nodded. “ **Okay. I’d** **better** **check for** **bandaids** **first.** ”   
“ **Uhh** **... sure.** ” Pearl sighed as he moved towards the nearest aisle. “ **You sweet, naïve boy...** ” she muttered fondly. 

As the two reached the tinned food aisle, they slowly moved along, paying close attention to what was left. “ **Hey, I found some baby potatoes.** ” Steven called, holding up a tin.   
Pearl quickly moved over to him. “ **Good job, Steven. Grab what we can, but leave a couple of tins for other people.** ” she patted the top of his head affectionately with a smile. 

A short while later, the two moved through the checkout. “ **Sorry for the lack of... well, everything really.** ” the cashier said as she started ringing them up. She did this by writing down in a book of carbon paper all of the barcode numbers of each product, followed by the quantity. She then looked up the price on a chart beside her and wrote it down.   
Pearl smiled. “ **That’s okay. With the recent events, well, it’s understandable.** ”   
Steven nudged Pearl’s side, and she glanced down to see him smiling hopefully with a packet of small chocolate bars.   
“ **Okay, but you have to share with Connie.** ” she sighed. “ **Put it on the counter.** ”   
Steven grinned. “ **Yesss** **!** ” 

The cashier smiled at him. “ **You are such a nice boy, helping your mother with her shopping.** ”   
Pearl blushed as Steven glanced at her. “ **Uhh** **... What's my total? Also, I need to pay American. I couldn’t exchange it...** ”   
The cashier grabbed the nearby calculator. “ **One moment...** ”   
The two waited nervously, not making eye contact as the cashier tallied everything.   
“ **Okay.** ” she said finally. “ **That should be... about fifty dollars.** ”   
Pearl handed the note over as Steven grabbed a bag. “ **Thank you.** ” Pearl added before she took the rest of the bags. 

As they walked down the street, Pearl sighed. “ **That... happens, sometimes. Not as often as it used to, but...** ”   
Steven nodded. “ **Yeah, they don’t know about... Rose...** ”   
Pearl shrugged. “ **Honestly? Up until you were four,** ** _you_** **actually thought I** ** _was_** **your mother.** ”   
Steven stopped walking. “ **Wait, what?!** ” his voice squeaked slightly.   
Pearl noticed a nearby bench and sat down with a sigh. “ **Yes. That was... rather uncomfortable, for both myself and Greg. The connotations, alone.** ” she muttered.   
“ **Oh. Wow.** ” Steven sat beside her. “ **I... I don’t remember that...** ”   
“ **Well, it hasn’t happened for a while. In Beach City, anyway. Most people there already understand, one way or another, that your mother... isn’t around anymore.** ” she briefly looked sad. “ **They mostly seem to think that we’re your aunts, or something of that nature. Perhaps they believe I'm Greg’s sister... Which is significantly better than wife.** ” she shuddered with disgust. With a glance at Steven, she blushed. “ **Well, no offence to your father, of course. It's just...** ”   
Steven snickered. “ **You only like the _ladies_?**” he grinned knowingly.   
Pearl blushed. “ **Well, yes. Men are** ** _disgusting_** **, Steven.** ” she added. 

“ **So, when did I stop calling you... that?** ” Steven asked, curious.   
Pearl shrugged. “ **Well, the first few years, you were simply too young to understand that we weren’t actually related to you. We were just... the woman who hung around and said they loved you. I supposed because I'm closer to your skin tone than the others, you assumed that I was your mother. Naturally, I did try to tell you otherwise.** ” she blushed slightly. “ **But,** **you didn’t understand. So, I had to let you call me that for a while, simply because, well...** ” she sighed. “ **At the time, you wanted, perhaps needed, a mother. Rose couldn’t be around for you, so... I filled in as best I could.** ”   
“ **That’s fair.** ” Steven nodded.   
“ **Once a year I'd try again, just to see if you could understand the truth yet. Finally, when you were four, you seemed to understand. I mean, you still called me that when you were scared, or you’d fallen and skinned your knees...** ” she shrugged. “ **...those times that you needed a mother to pick you up and give you some Cookie Cat** **bandaids** **, so... that’s what I did. By the time you were five though, you were just calling me Pearl.** ” 

Steven quickly leaned over and gave her a hug. “ **You were a good mother, Pearl.** ”   
Pearl blushed and hugged him back. “ **That’s... good to know, actually. Honestly, I was winging it the entire time.** ”   
Steven let go and looked at her. “ **Yeah?** ”   
Pearl nodded. “ **Oh** ** _yeah_** **. I had** ** _no idea_** **what I was even doing. None of us did. Steven, Gems don’t have children. We never** ** _were_** **children.** **Before you showed up, w** **hat we knew about babies and kids wouldn't fill a single page of paper. And that’s mostly how to make them...** ” she added with a blush. “ **I** ** _still_** **don’t know how you turned out even** ** _remotely_** **normal...** ” she added as she stood up and picked her bags up.   
“ **Pearl, I’m a half-human boy with a big pink gem for a belly button, and a magical pink zombie lion for a pet... Who said I’m** ** _normal_** **?** ” Steven grinned.   
Pearl laughed. “ **Okay, you got me with the lion...** ” 

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 **_THAT NIGHT..._ ** 

“ **Hey, Pearl?** ” Amethyst whispered.   
Pearl glanced away from her book to check on Steven. “ **Yes, Amethyst?** ” she responded once she was sure he was asleep.   
Amethyst gently tapped the tip of Pearl’s nose. “ **Are you okay? I mean... the arena, and being chased** **outta** **that town... and that creep hitting on you in front of his kid...** ”   
Pearl huffed quietly. “ **I still think that I should have thrown him overboard. I’m sure his wife wouldn’t have minded...** ”   
Amethyst stifled a chuckle. “ **Shame he didn’t think you were a dude, like the guy at the front desk...** ” she paused. “ **Unless, he did think that...** ” she looked at Pearl briefly.   
The two clapped their hands over their mouths as they giggled. 

Pearl sighed and checked on Steven again. “ **It’s a good thing he’s such a deep sleeper...** ”   
“ **Yeah...** ” Amethyst smirked. “ **We could probably make out, he wouldn’t know.** ”   
“ **Amethyst...** ” Pearl said, the warning apparent in her tone.   
Amethyst rolled her eyes. “ **Just kidding... Mostly...** ” she grinned cheekily.   
Pearl rolled her eyes. “ **I’ll bet...** ” 

Amethyst tapped Pearl’s arm. “ **So, are you okay?** ”   
Pearl sighed and closed the book, placing it on the small table between the beds. “ **I-I’m not entirely sure...** ” she rolled onto her side, her hands bunching up slightly.    
Amethyst placed a hand on top of hers. “ **Yeah?** ”   
“ **That arena was... it was where I first learnt to use a sword. Where I first started to fight for my freedom.** ” she sniffed. “ **With the entire warp system down... there are so many important places that are out of reach. Like the Fountain. I can reach it on foot, but it’s a long and difficult journey, so Steven will have to wait in my gem until I reach it. Some warp pads might be too damaged even for Steven to repair. Those places are lost forever now... not to mention the strong possibility that this is just the first stage of a new invasion by** **Homeworld** **...** ” she turned her gaze towards the purple Gem. “ **Amethyst, I... I’m not sure that I can go through another war...** ” she whispered, tearing up.   
Amethyst wiggled forwards and squeezed an arm beneath her, drawing Pearl closer. “ **Come here...** ” she whispered as Pearl quietly sobbed. 

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 **_THE NEXT MORNING..._ ** 

Steven woke and stretched. Yawning, he made his way to the bathroom for his morning rituals.   
Finally, he stepped out of the bathroom. “ **Good** **mor.** **..** ” he stilled, eyes wide.   
Pearl lay, snoring softly, in Amethyst's arms. The faint blue light from her gem filled the room as it reflected off the ceiling. As he watched, Pearl stirred and shifted closer, the light disappearing as she nuzzled her gem into Amethysts’ neck. To Steven's embarrassment, she gave the purple gem on Amethysts’ chest a small peck, smiling slightly.   
“ **Oh.** **Em** **. Gee.** ” Steven whispered, his eyes sparkling.  

Carefully, he slipped through the door into the adjoining room.   
Garnet was lying face-down on the bed, snoring as the bed creaked occasionally beneath her.   
Steven crept over to the other bed and poked the side of Connie’s face. “ **Connie? Wake up, you** **gotta** **see this...** ”   
“ **Hmpah** **?** ” Connie murmured, opening one eye into a slit.   
“ **Connie, seriously. You** ** _have_** **to see this. Now.** ” Steven tapped her cheek again, and Connie slowly sat up, rubbing her face.    
“ **Steven? What-** ”   
He placed a finger against her lips. “ **Shh. Come on, I** **gotta** **show** **ya** **something crazy.** ” 

Connie yawned as she stepped through the door. “ **What is... Whoa.** ” Her eyes snapped open at the sight.   
Steven glanced at her. “ **Yeah, I know. Pearl rolled over, and she** ** _kissed Amethyst’s gem_** **.** ” he whispered.   
“ **This is big.** ” Connie murmured.   
A hand came down over their mouths, and their eyes widened as they were both lifted up. 

Garnet lifted them both up easily and carried them back into the room. Setting them down on Connie’s bed, she turned and quietly closed the connecting door. “ **You have questions.** ” she stated simply, her voice low.   
“ **How long has** ** _that_** **been going on?** ” Connie whispered, pointing towards the other room.   
Garnet sat on the edge of her bed and sighed. “ **Only a little while now. They wanted to keep it quiet for a** **bit** **.** ”   
Steven looked confused. “ **Wait? They’ve been dating, and no-one told me? But...** ”   
Garnet shrugged. “ **Steven. You need to know a few things, to understand why they wanted to keep this secret.** ” 

At Steven’s nod, Garnet continued. “ **You are aware that Pearl was in a relationship with Rose.** ”   
Steven blushed and nodded. “ **Yeah... But mum fell for my dad as well...** ”   
Garnet nodded. “ **Yes. Well, that hurt Pearl, a lot. She blamed herself for how badly their relationship failed. Even if that blame was** ** _highly_** **misplaced...** ” she added with a hint of bitterness in her voice. “ **Meanwhile, Amethyst has liked Pearl for some time, knowing that Pearl was already in love with Rose. She** **never** **fe** **lt** **like she** **wa** **s good enough for Pearl.** ”   
Steven nodded sadly. “ **They don’t really think much of themselves, do they?** ”   
“ **No.** ” Garnet shook her head. “ **But they both think the other is amazing.** ” 

“ **Which is why they needed to keep their relationship a secret. They both wanted time to figure out how to make this work, despite their own personal issues. They needed to convince themselves that they were allowed to** ** _want_** **to be loved, and by each other at that.** ” she sighed. “ **Pearl needed time to accept that this isn’t cheating on Rose, that’s she’s allowed to move on with someone else. Amethyst needed the time to convince herself that she’s good enough for Pearl, and to lose her doubts about Pearl wanting to be with her.** **They wanted to do this in their own time, without any pressure from anybody to be open about it.** ” Garnet shrugged. “ **Plus, up until fairly recently, they argued with each other a** ** _lot_** **. So, they also had the fear that they** ** _couldn’t_** **make this work. That they’d just have a fight and break up within a week.** ” She glanced back towards the door. “ **Whether allowing themselves to be caught means that they want to be more open about it, or if this is just a slip up... I** **dunno** **... It could be that Pearl simply didn’t** ** _expect_** **to fall asleep, so she didn’t think you’d wake up and catch them like this. Which is understandable. She doesn’t usually sleep at all.** ”   
“ **So, what do we do now?** ” Connie asked.   
Steven rubbed the back of his neck. “ **Do... do we tell them we know?** ”   
Garnet shrugged. “ **Just pretend you don’t for now. I'll find out if they want you to know yet, and if so, then I’ll let them know you saw them being cute. If not...** ” she sighed. “ **Then I am in** ** _big_** **trouble for blabbing.** ”  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eh, I'm still not entirely sure about the ending for this chapter, but whatevs.  
> I can always edit it later if I figure out a better way of wording it.
> 
>  
> 
> You'll notice there's only a couple of chapters left.  
> To be honest, it's mostly just time-skipped travelling.  
> Rather than writing "They walked for a long time. Garnet carried the children when they got tired, and everyone occasionally snickered and grinned as Amethyst and Pearl tried not to be too obvious about how badly they want to snog." I opted to just say how many days has passed between the interesting bits. *shrugs*
> 
> See ya next weekend!


	13. Fire and Ice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Suddenly, bear.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the delay. I had a hell of a weekend...
> 
> I spent most of it waiting for some people to show up to buy some of dad's old crap.  
> And a bout of insomnia... I ended up spending an entire night, laying in bed, not even tired, just hoping to get to sleep. I was awake for about 30 hours before I finally dozed off...
> 
> It's only just occurred to me that I hadn't posted the next chapter.

**_TWO DAYS LATER..._ ** 

Pearl cautiously glanced around as she slipped into the alleyway. With one last check for prying eyes, she stored the wad of money in her gem.   
“ **Well, it wasn’t cheap, but that hotel wasn’t that bad.** ” she mused as she returned.   
Steven sighed. “ **I’m going to miss th** **e** **buffet table...** ”   
“ **And the hot water...** ” Connie added.   
Pearl nodded. “ **Yes.** **Well, we should get moving. We have a long way to go**.” 

As they group left the city behind them, Amethyst and Pearl in the lead, with Garnet bringing up the rear.    
Pearls’ arm brushed against Amethysts’, and they glanced at each other with a blush.   
Behind them, Steven and Connie noticed, and quickly stifled giggles.   
‘ _Dorks..._ ’ Garnet chuckled lowly.  

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 **_THE PREVIOUS NIGHT..._ ** 

“ **So, you just...** ** _told them_** **?** ” Pearl hissed, face teal as her eyes darted inside the room towards the sleeping kids.   
Garnet nodded. “ **They guessed after they found you two cuddling. I merely confirmed what they already knew.** ”   
Amethyst ran her hand down her face. “ **Man... this is** **awk-warrrdd** **...** ”   
Pearl sat on the balcony’s railing, her face in her hands. “ **T** **his... isn’t how I wanted him to find out...** ”   
“ **Well, I guess it** **coulda** **been worse...** ” Amethyst mused. “ **They** **coulda** **caught us making out...** ”   
Pearl groaned. “ **Good point.** ** _That_** **would have been** ** _really_** **awkward...** ”   
Garnet folded her arms. “ **Well, if it helps, they’re okay with it. Steven** ** _was_** **confused about why no-one told him, but I explained it as best as I could. I think he’s happy for you both.** ”   
“ **Eh, it’s** ** _Steven_** **. He wants** ** _everyone_** **to be happy.** ” Amethyst rolled her eyes.   
Pearl sighed. “ **Well, that’s true. I guess the proverbial** **domesticated** **feline is out of the hessian receptacle now...** ” she huffed.  

“ **They probably won’t say anything about it until you do.** ” Garnet shrugged.    
Amethyst sighed. “ **So, now what?** ”   
Pearl glanced at Amethyst with a blush. “ **Well... if they know, then there is really no point in trying to hide our... relationship. I suppose we can be more... open, about it, from this point forward...** ”   
Amethyst stared at her. “ **Uh, yeah?** **Ya** **sure?** ”   
“ **I can live with that.** ” Pearl smiled.   
Garnet chuckled. “ **As long as you keep the** **smoochies** **to a minimum in front of Steven, they won’t complain.** ”   
Pearl huffed. “ **Hypocrite... He’s started to cover his eyes whenever you** **unfuse** **.** ”   
Amethyst sniggered. “ **Tsktsktsk** **... Some Gems have** ** _no_** **shame, or self-control.** ” she shook her head with a grin as Garnet blushed.   
“ **Shut up.** ” she muttered as the two stifled giggles. 

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 **_EVENING..._ ** 

As night began to fall, a soft green glow lit up the sky. Steven and Connie stopped and stared, transfixed at the swirling waves of light.   
“ **Is that...** ” Connie gasped.   
Pearl looked up. “ **The** **A** **urora** **B** **orealis.** ” she confirmed.   
“ **It’s the most beautiful thing I have ever seen...** ” Steven whispered, awestruck.   
Pearl sighed. “ **No matter how many times I see it, it still amazes me. I mean, I've seen it from space. It's actually forms a circle around the poles, and there’s a matching one, the** **A** **urora** **A** **ustralis, in the southern hemisphere of the planet at the same time... But, it’s still a beautiful and wondrous sight... It’s no wonder that ancient humans created so many** **mythos** **around the lights...** ”   
Amethyst looked at the distracted kids and slowly reached up and took Pearl’s hand. Pearl glanced down with a blush and tightened her grip with a smile.   
Garnet smiled as the aurora reflected off of her sunglasses. 

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 **_THE NEXT DAY..._ ** 

“ **I... don’t like the look of those clouds...** ” Pearl nodded towards the horizon.   
Garnet looked over at the dark heavy clouds. “ **Hmm... We should find shelter before the blizzard hits us.** ”   
Amethyst looked around at the vast empty expanse. “ **Uh, where, G?** ”    
Garnet thought for a moment. “ **If we continue to walk in our current direction, there should be a cave. It’s likely we’ll reach it before the storm does.** ” she added as she picked up the two kids.   
Pearl nodded. “ **Let’s go.** ” 

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As the group rounded the edge of the sheer rock cliff, they spotted the opening in the rocks ahead.    
“ **Over there!** ” Steven called from his perch on Garnet’s left shoulder.   
Pearl glanced back towards the clouds and the obvious wall of heavy snow blowing beneath it. “ **Not a moment too soon...** ” she muttered. “ **Everyone inside!** ”   
As the group started towards the cave, a flash of moving snow approached from their right, and Pearl was slammed to the ground by a pile of white fur and gnashing teeth. 

As Pearl’s form gave out, she vanished in a puff of smoke. The polar bear, startled, backed off briefly before turning towards the group with a roar.   
“ **Pearl!** ” Amethyst yelled, summoning her whip. She lashed out, forcing the bear back.   
Garnet quickly summoned her gauntlets and fired them at the bear, sending it tumbling across the snowy ground.   
The bear picked itself up and lumbered away, snorting roughly through a broken muzzle that oozed a thin trail of blood, which was quickly covered up by the blowing snow. 

Connie pointed from atop Garnet’s right shoulder. “ **The storm’s here!** ” she shouted as the wind picked up, whistling violently.   
Amethyst rushed forwards and grabbed Pearl’s gem, barely pausing as she bolted for the cave entrance, Garnet and the two kids close behind. 

As Amethyst settled herself against the back of the cave, cradling Pearl’s gem with a sniff, Garnet put Steven and Connie on the ground.   
Steven immediately ran forwards. “ **Does she need healing?** ” he whispered.   
Amethyst turned the pale white stone over in her hands. “ **No. I think she’s okay.** ” she breathed.   
Steven sighed with relief as he sat down beside her. “ **That’s good.** ” 

Connie shivered as the cold wind entered the cave.   
Garnet glanced down at her, and with a nod, she unfused.   
Ruby jumped to her feet and grabbed Connie, sitting her a short distance from Steven before settling herself down between them. “ **I’ll keep you warm.** ” she promised as she wrapped her arms around them.   
Sapphire floated up and used her powers to freeze the blowing snow, creating a wall of ice that partially blocked the entrance. She left a small gap at the top and shifted back, nodding briefly before she sat down in front of them. “ **Hello Steven. Hello Connie.** ” she smiled. “ **Enjoying my** **little** **space heater?** ” 

As Steven covered his eyes, Connie snickered as Ruby blushed. “ **Saffy** **! Don't say things like that!** ”   
Sapphire smirked. “ **Well, you are a heater, from space. Space heater.** ”   
“ **Sttooopppp** **...** ” Ruby moaned, her face glowing.   
Sapphire giggled. “ **There. Now it’s much warmer in here. Well done, Ruby.** ”   
Ruby huffed. “ **You are too cruel to me**.” she chuckled.    
Steven sighed. “ **Uhh** **... are you done flirting yet?** ” he asked, his face red behind his arm.   
“ **That’d be a first.** ” Amethyst snorted as the lovesick pair blushed. “ **They haven’t stopped in at least five thousand years...** ”   
“ **Shut up...** ” they groaned at the same time, small smiles on their faces. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No-one ever expects bears.
> 
>  
> 
> One more chapter left.  
> In this part.  
> Yep, there's more to come.  
> I'll probably submit the final chapter of this part tomorrow.


	14. Travels

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Places to go, things to do.

**_TWO DAYS LATER..._ ** 

As Pearl dropped to the ground with a sigh, Amethyst immediately wrapped her arms around her.   
Pearl looked down at her with a blush. “ **Hello to you, too.** ”   
Glancing around, she noted the cave with the wall of ice as a wind-block and Ruby cuddled between Steven and Connie. With a nod, she smiled. “ **Good job.** ”   
Steven’s stomach grumbled. He nervously laughed. “ **I’m** ** _really_** **hungry.** ”   
Pearl shook her head with a smile as Amethyst let go. “ **Okay, let’s see what I can do.** ” 

“ **Why can’t we just start a fire?** ” Ruby crossed her arms and grumbled as Pearl set the cooking pot on top of her head.    
Pearl started chopping carrots as Amethyst poured bottled water into the pot. “ **Because, it’d take too long to get hot enough to cook with. You are simply more convenient.** ”   
Sapphire leaned in and gave Ruby a quick kiss on the lips. As Sapphire leaned back with a grin, they heard the water start to boil merrily.   
“ **Faster too, with Sapphire’s help.** ” Pearl smirked. 

About an hour later, Connie leaned back happily as she used a finger to get the last traces of food from her bowl. “ **That was** **sooo** **good.** ” she sighed.   
“ **I’ll need to get out, to clean this.** ” Pearl nodded towards the wall of ice that still partially blocked the entrance as she picked up the now empty cooking pot.   
Ruby placed a hand on the wall of ice, swiftly melting it. With a nod as Pearl went past, Ruby grinned and picked up Sapphire, the two laughing as they glowed.   
“ **Hey.** ” Garnet grinned.   
" **Hi Garnet.** " Steven burped. “ **Whoops... Sorry. My tummy’s happy.** ”   
Pearl glanced over as she scrubbed the pot with handfuls of snow. “ **Well, that’s the important thing.** ” Examining the pot, she looked around before she nodded and stored it. “ **Now that you’re both fed and the blizzard has passed, we should probably get moving again. We’ve lost quite a bit of time due to that storm... and that bear...** ” she frowned. “ **I don’t** **even** **know** **_why_** **it went for me. I** ** _clearly_** **have no meat on me...** ”   
“ **Maybe it was looking for a toothpick...** ” Garnet smirked.   
Pearl slapped her on the arm. “ **Quiet, you blockhead.** ” she muttered, humour in her eyes. 

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As they neared the coast, Steven and Connie both gasped from Garnet’s shoulders.   
“ **The ocean’s frozen!** ”   
Pearl examined the edge. “ **Hmm... If we can get across here, it would save us at** ** _least_** **another day or so of travelling... Garnet? What does future vision say about our chances of crossing here safely?** ”   
Garnet paused as she tested the various possibilities. “ **Hmm... It should be alright. As long as we don’t go too far south; the ice is thinner there.** ”   
Pearl nodded. “ **Okay.** ” She shimmered briefly as she phased on a different set of shoes. Lifting her left foot, she revealed the blade of an ice skate.   
Garnet nodded and gave herself combat-style boots. She stepped forwards confidently, the large spikes underneath making small scraping sounds as they bit into the ice.   
Amethyst shapeshifted into a penguin and belly-flopped forward, sliding across the ice with a laugh. “ **Last one to Canada buys the pancakes!** ”   
“ **Last one there has to eat them.** ” Pearl chuckled as she stepped out, sliding across with grace. “ ** _Without_** **syrup.** ” she added as she darted forwards.   
“ **Garnet,** ** _run_** **!** ” Steven shouted as the two sped ahead. 

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After leaving the ice, over the course of the following day, they travelled south and managed to make it across the next island. After a short wait, they boarded a ferry across the bay, reaching the small town of _Sideline_ shortly before nightfall. 

Noting the tired, hungry half-frozen kids, Pearl summoned the wad of money and found a small hotel for the night. A little diner was across the road, and as Pearl examined a newly brought map and consulted quietly with Garnet about their options, the others happily ate as they celebrated finally reaching the mainland American continent. 

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 **_THE NEXT DAY..._ ** 

Garnet stood, checking future vision. “ **Go.** ” She nodded.   
Pearl quickly jimmied the door open and slipped into the driver’s seat. With a flick of her wrist, she started the car as the group piled into the other seats and quickly pulled on their belts.   
Pearl pulled out of the spot and made for the main road out of town, obeying the speed limit to avoid attracting attention.   
“ **I can’t believe we did that...** ” Connie shook her head.   
Amethyst grinned. “ **Pearl, you badass.** ”   
Pearl smiled as she drove past the sign noting that they were leaving the town of _Sideline_. “ **Well, if they didn’t want their vehicles to be stolen, they should have a better security system installed.** ” she smirked, glancing at them in the rear view.   
Steven placed a hand on his forehead dramatically. “ **Oh,** ** _when_** **will your six thousand-year long crime spree** ** _end_** **?** ” he giggled.   
“ ** _Never._** ” Pearl laughed. 

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After two days of steadily driving the long featureless winding highway, stopping only for fuel, they reached the small city of _Ames_.   
Amethyst stood, grinning in front of the sign. “ **Hey, it me!** ”   
Pearl chuckled and summoned her phone, snapping a picture of Amethyst pointing at the sign, the angle causing her hand to cover up the ‘ _s_ ’. “ **Yes, it’s you,** **Ame** **.** ”   
Pearl put the phone away and looked around. “ **We should probably leave this car here... We'll have to find another one to get the rest of the way... Or at least to the border.** ”   
Garnet nodded. “ **Chances are that we’ll find** **one unattended over this way.** ” she pointed.   
Steven and Connie nodded as they slipped out of the back seat.  

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 **_TWO DAYS LATER... NIGHT:_ ** 

Pearl nervously looked around. At the nod from Garnet, she picked up Connie and leapt over the fence, Garnet, Amethyst and Steven landing with soft thuds besides her.   
“ **This way...** ” Pearl hissed, leading the way through the thick dark forest.   
As they slipped out of the forest, Pearl looked back towards the border with a smile. “ **Welcome to New England.** ”   
“ **Better than the old one...** ” Amethyst sang softly.   
Garnet shrugged. “ **I prefer Merry Old England.** ”   
“ **Nah, too much plague...** ” Amethyst murmured.   
Pearl nodded. “ **And not enough basic hygiene.** ” 

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 **_MORNING:_ ** 

Pearl slipped the hat over her gem and checked that the money was safely in her pocket. Finally, she zipped the pocket up. “ **Okay, we should be too long. I hope I can get everything. The shipping issue has most likely affected America too...** ”   
“ **We probably have enough stuff to last us the rest of the way...** ” Amethyst grumbled, annoyed at being left behind.   
Pearl sighed and patted the shorter Gems’ hair with a faint blush. “ **Probably. But we don’t know what’s happening in Beach City. We could walk into an invasion, and be dragged off to** **Homeworld** **. Then, whatever supplies I have stored will be all we have for them.** ” she indicated Steven and Connie. “ **It’s best if I grab what I can now. If I’m wrong about the invasion, and the warp system just suffered a catastrophic failure of some sorts... Then, at least we’ll have supplies** **stored away** **for when** **Homeworld** **_does_** **inevitably attack.** ” she nodded to Connie as they started walking. “ **I’d rather be overly prepared than under-prepared...** ” 

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As Pearl stuffed some cartons of bottled water into the shopping cart, Connie walked up with an armful of instant noodles. “ **This enough?** ” she asked as she dumped them into the cart.   
Pearl quickly examined. “ **Yes, that should do.** ” Looking around at the almost-empty shelves, she sighed. “ **Okay, I’ll head off to see if there’s any bottled fruit juice left... Nobody gets scurvy on my watch.** ” she frowned. “ **You should grab whatever supplies you need. For that... thing... you do...** ” she blushed.   
Connie nodded, her face darkening. “ **Right. I hate that thing...** ” she muttered as she moved off. 

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As the pair left the supermarket with a cartload of groceries, Pearl looked around. “ **Over there.** ” she whispered.   
Connie followed Pearl towards the edge of the car park.   
Pearl slipped behind the large billboard proclaiming the merits of one dentist recommended toothpaste over another. “ **Okay, quickly, before anyone sees... Let’s get this all stored away.** ”   
Once every bag was stashed safely in her gem, they returned the cart and started the long walk back towards the edge of town.   
“ **I managed to get most of what I think we’ll be needing.** ” Pearl mused as they walked.   
Connie nodded. “ **Yeah. It's a good thing Steven’s dad gave you that emergency cash.** ”   
“ **Oh, yes. I’ll have to be sure to thank Greg for that when we return. Also, to ask for more... I am running quite low...** ” she glanced around for danger as she removed the far slimmer stack of money from a pocket. “ **Hmm... I doubt we’ll be able to stay in any more hotels for the rest of the trip. But we’re very close to Delmarva now.** ”   
Connie glanced at her. “ **How close?** ”   
“ **Probably only a few more days. If we can find some transportation, we can be home within the week.** ” Pearl sighed as she zipped the pocket back up.   
Connie grinned. “ **Can you steal a Ferrari this time? I’ve heard they go pretty fast...** ”   
Pearl laughed. “ **Connie! Ferrari’s are** ** _far_** **too visible. We would have the police tailing us within the hour...** ” 

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 **_TWO DAYS LATER..._ ** 

Amethyst looked out of the boxcar. “ **Guys, it looks like this train** **aint** **heading our way anymore...** ”    
Pearl looked out with a frown. “ **Hmmm... Yes. We** ** _definitely_** **do not want to go west. We have to hop off now.** ”   
“ **Looks like this is our stop, buddy.** ” Amethyst nudged the sleeping Steven.   
Garnet carefully picked him up with one hand as she held Connie under one arm. 

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After a short walk, they noticed the ground beneath their feet had become dry and lifeless.   
Amethyst looked ahead with a grin. “ **Alright! The Kindergarten!** ” she laughed, running forward. “ **Man, I hope my hole’s okay...** ” 

As Amethyst settled happily into the back of her hole, Garnet set Connie down on her feet nearby and placed the dozing boy near the entrance of the hole.   
Turning, she spotted Pearl picking up some small pieces of clear blue shards and smiled. “ **We’re** **gonna** **try and rebuild the warp.** ” she nodded at Connie. “ **Watch Steven for us.** ” 

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An hour later, Pearl nudged the last piece into place. “ **Looks like we have almost all of it, except for a small piece there and there.** ” she pointed with a nod.   
Amethyst sighed. “ **Man, that’s a relief. It’d suck not being able to come back here...** ” she shrugged. “ **I mean, I sometimes take the train here, just for a change, but... It takes a while,** **ya** **know?** ”   
Pearl smiled at her. “ **Vaguely... But we should see if Steven’s rested enough to fix it now.** ”   
Garnet shook her head and pointed down to where Connie had fallen asleep leaning against Steven. “ **Nah, let them sleep for now. It’s late; he can fix it in the morning.** ”   
Amethyst nodded. “ **Okay. Oh, how about we pop back to the Battlefield, grab some fresh strawberries for them for breakfast?** ”   
“ **Excellent idea.** ” Pearl smiled. “ **Then, in the morning, we can take that train you mentioned, and finally get back home.** ”   
Garnet smiled. “ **I’ll keep watch over them.** ” 

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 **_LATE_ ** **_THE NEXT MORNING..._ ** 

“ **Beach City should be just another hour or so away.** ” Pearl sighed happily. “ **In fact,** ” she looked ahead. “ **We should be able to see it from the top of this next hill.** ”   
Gasping, Steven and Connie grinned.   
“ **Race** **ya** **?** ” Connie smirked, already moving forward.   
Steven’s eyes widened. “ **Hey! No fair! Wait up!** ”   
The Gems smiled fondly as they watched the two young teens laughing and jumping their way up the hill. 

At the top, the two stopped in their tracks, eyes wide.   
Connie’s hand covered her mouth as Steven stared.   
The Gems glanced at each other with concern before running to catch up. 

As the group stared at the familiar, but eerily empty town below, their hearts dropped.   
Even from here, they could see brightly coloured people moving through the streets.   
Pearl looked at the large green pyramid hovering soundlessly above the bay in front of their temple home, fear in her eyes.   
“ **Homeworld** **.** ” she breathed. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DundunDUH!  
> When you least expect it, CLIFFHANGER!
> 
>  
> 
> 0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0  
> A couple of points I want to make.  
> The town of Sideline is based on Eastmain, Quebec. I just... needed a place accessible from Hudson bay. *shrugs* It's a Cree village IRL, but as it's essentially canon that ancient humans didn't make it to the Americas, it's safe to assume that the Cree people never existed in the SU universe. So here, Sideline is just a regular small city.  
> On the plus side, that means there was no genocide of the native Americans in the SU canon.
> 
> Ames is based on Amos, also in Quebec. 
> 
> The two towns are also conveniently connected by: Route de Eastmain Village; which connects to James Bay Road, which eventually turns into Highway109, which goes through Amos.
> 
> I took a wild guess at how long it took them to make the long drive. Just assume that Pearl speed like crazy on the long empty stretches in order to make it between the towns in only two days...  
> But, if it's physically impossible to make that distance in that short a time, even whilst speeding for most of it, let me know what the minimum should be, and I'll edit with a more realistic time, and re-work my timeline to match.  
> This also applies to it taking two days to get from Amos to the Canadian/American border. Let me know if it's impossible.  
> 0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
> 
>  
> 
> Okay, that's it for part 1 of Stranded.  
> Thanks for sticking with my incoherent ramblings so far.
> 
> I'm gonna take a short hiatus.  
> Part 2, Homesick, will begin on the first weekend of April.  
> Unless I forget. Then it's whenever I remember. *shrugs*


End file.
